A court yesterday heard how a Frenchman exported a dismantled military plane from Malta without the necessary authorisation.

Police Inspector Angelo Gafa was testifying in the compilation of evidence against Jean Jacques Fuentes, 48, who is pleading not guilty to his involvement in the exportation of a Strikemaster to the Ivory Coast.

Inspector Gafa testified that the police investigation focused on two military aircraft but the accused is only being charged with the exportation of one of them. He told the court that the first plane was flown out of Malta while the other was disassembled and shipped to the Ivory Coast in two containers. He said that customs officers had specifically requested that the second aircraft does not leave Malta without their authorisation.

Inspector Gafa said the UK customs had informed the Malta customs that according to information they had received, the two planes were going to be armed with heavy weapons in Malta and taken to the Ivory Coast in order to be used there for the civil war. However, when pressed by the defence, Mr Gafa said that the prosecution did not have any evidence to sustain this claim by the UK customs officials.

Answering other questions under cross examination, Mr Gafa said he was not in a position to confirm that the first plane stopped in Sardinia, Nice, Spain, Portugal and other countries on its way to the Ivory Coast and neither that the planes were inspected by United Nations officials on their arrival in the Ivory Coast.

The case continues.

Police Inspector Angelo Gafa prosecuted while Dr Joseph Giglio and Dr Robert Abela prosecuted.