Weapons, munitions and explosives were found at the bottom of the sea in Rabat on Sunday, police said on Monday.

Several reports on Monday afternoon said that the find was linked to Robert and Adrian Agius - better known as the Maksar brothers - who currently stand accused of making the bomb which killed Daphne Caruana Galizia, while Adrian Agius in particular is also facing charges in relation to another murder - that of lawyer Carmel Chircop.

Police said in a statement that they received a report at around 3:15pm that some weapons had been seen underwater in the area known as Miġra Ferħa in Rabat.

The report was soon confirmed, with district police, the Major Crimes squad, and members of the Armed Forces of Malta all on site.

Searches in the area ended at around 7pm on Sunday, and continued through to Monday morning before coming to a conclusion at 11:30am.

Police said that weapons, munitions and material suspected to be explosives, were raised from the sea – but gave no indication of what the weapons were or of the quantities found.

Sources however have been quoted saying that an AK-47, other rifles, ammunition, and detonators linked to the Maksar crime group were amongst the items lifted from the seabed.

Duty magistrate Monica Vella is leading a magisterial inquiry while police investigations are ongoing.