A 62-year-old man from Valletta was yesterday arrested at the Malta International Airport after members of the Drugs Squad and customs officers found almost half a kilogramme of heroin hidden in his shoes.

In a statement, the police said that the man had just arrived from Rome in the afternoon and found 226 grams of heroin hidden in the heel of one shoe and 271 hidden in the other.

According to preliminary investigations, the man had visited Turkey and is also known to the police.

Duty magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera appointed several experts to help her in the inquiry.