A drug courier has been jailed for 11 years and fined €23,000 after he admitted to association to import heroin and being in possession of heroin.

Justo Ernesto Belliver Bayo was arrested on June 17, 2010 after heroin was found in his shoes when he arrived in Malta on a flight from Amsterdam.

The court heard that while he was unemployed, the accused had met a man called Corlos who put him in touch with another man, called Daniel, who invited him to carry drugs to Malta.

The accused travelled from Spain to Amsterdam after picking up his flight tickets from a dustbin in the men's toilet of a cafeteria in Valencia.

He then picked up the shoes with the drug inside from a dustbin at a train station in Amsterdam.

He was instructed to travel to Malta and contact Daniel when he got to an address in Birzebbuga. He was promised €3,000 for his work.

Malta customs were tipped off about the plot. When the accused arrived in Malta, a customs officer pierced his shoes and and the drug flowed out.

In all, 1127.9 grams of heroin were found. Purity was 26.7%.