The two men who underwent a jury trial for smuggling close to 20kg of cannabis resin were acquitted this afternoon.

Barman Godfrey Gambin, 40, had been arrested on charges relating to drugs and drugs smuggling at Xemxija in July 2010 together with Adel Mohammed Babani, 51.

A third man, Nabeil Saleh, had been arrested, however escaped when he was let out on bail

Gambin was found guilty of simple possession of cannabis, resulting in a two-year conditional discharge.

Defence lawyers had raised a number of questions regarding the way the police handled the investigation.

Former assistant commissioner Neil Harrison had, early on in the trial, revealed that the arrest came from a controlled delivery. The defence, in response, put into question the legality of the operation, and said that this fact had been hidden from the defence for a number of years.

The jury found Gambin and Babani not guilty by 7 votes to 2 of drug trafficking, conspiracy to traffick cannabis and aggravated possession.

Lawyers Giannella Camilleri Busuttil and Nadia Attard from the Office of the Attorney General prosecuted. Lawyers Alfred Abela, Franco Debono, Mario Mifsud appeared for Gambin, while lawyer Malcolm Mifsud defended Mr Babani.