Catering equipment, confiscated by the government from the controversial turquoise Magic Kiosk restaurant in Sliema, was sold for about €10,000 during an auction in Valletta on Saturday.

In total, 249 items were auctioned off, mostly appliances and kitchen utensils, yielding more than expected by the auctioneers, who had valued the equipment beforehand. A spokesman for the Land Department, which evicted the owner and brought down the structure, said: "We are pleased that the auction was extremely successful and very well attended".

The restaurant was demolished recently after its owner, Joe Pace, ignored two eviction notices issued by the Land Department after his lease of the land it was built on, St Anne Square, expired last year.

Minister for Resources and Rural Affairs, George Pullicino wanted the government to take the square back in order to restore it for public enjoyment.