The police seized more than 12 tonnes of cannabis resin in the first 10 months of this year, when confiscated drugs hit record highs, official information published this week shows.

The figures, tabled in Parliament by Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia in reply to a question by Opposition MP Beppe Fenech Adami, come just a month after the police made what was believed to be the biggest drug haul in Malta, when several tonnes of cannabis resin were found in containers at the Freeport.

Apart from the massive increase in the amount of cannabis resin seized when compared to last year, which, sources noted, was driven by last month’s haul, the police also confiscated bigger amounts of other drugs.

Fewer than 20 grams of MDMA powder was confiscated by the police last year. The police haul of the same substance reached 100 grams this month. Similarly, while last year just 0.4 grams of amphetamine were seized, this rose to 3.5 grams this year.

Higher MDMA and LSD finds recorded

Despite the higher amounts of such drugs being seized, cannabis remained the most common illicit substance found by the police, according to the figures.

Apart from the 12 tonnes of resin, up from 600 kilos in 2017, the police also found 542 kilos of cannabis grass so far this year, up from 33 kilos last year. The number of joints confiscated, 107, remained unchanged.

A further 7.7 kilos of cocaine, 1.2 kilos of heroin and 246 ecstasy pills were seized, together with 20 grams of synthetic powder, 88 LSD tabs and 20 grams of magic mushrooms.

The amount of cocaine seized – 7.7 kilos – this year was notably lower than in 2017, when 322 kilos had been found. However, Customs had last year made the biggest cocaine haul when more than 300 kilos were found in a container on a ship that had stopped in Malta on her way from Ecuador to Spain. Police sources indicated that this single haul was the reason for the spike.

A national discussion that could lead to the legalisation of cannabis was kickstarted last year after Prime Minister Joseph Muscat pledged, ahead of the last general election, that a Labour government would set the ball rolling for a “national discussion” on the topic.

Medical cannabis was officially legalised last March, enabling doctors to prescribe the drug to patients with chronic pain and other conditions, including the side effects of chemotherapy.

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