Joseph Muscat, a 44-year-old man who lives in Victoria, was this afternoon granted bail against a deposit of €1,000 and a personal guarantee of €5,000 after he pleaded not guilty to producing and storing fireworks illegally.

Mr Muscat, a stonemason, was arrested on Wednesday evening after the police seized a 20-foot container containing illegally manufactured fireworks from Triq Santa Dminka, Victoria.

The container was in a field in the vicinity of a convent.

Sources said Mr Muscat used the container as a workshop as well as a store both for his stone and fireworks.

Besides the finished product, there was also sulphur and gunpowder stored next to each other as well as other flammable material.

The court also suspended his fireworks licence for the duration of the case.

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