Two men have been acquitted of charges related to the possession of contraband cigarettes after a court ruled the prosecution had failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the illicit goods were under their possession or control.

The case stemmed from events dating back to February 2015.

The case centred on a search carried out on 21 February 2015 at a garage in Fgura, where Customs and police officers discovered 176 cartons of contraband cigarettes.

Prosecutors alleged that the two accused had knowingly possessed the cigarettes with the intention of evading excise duty, import duty and VAT.

Evidence presented during the proceedings showed that the garage was rented by one of the accused, who immediately cooperated with officers and explained that another man also had access to the premises. He contacted the co-accused to come to the scene, while both men consistently denied ownership of the cigarettes.

The second accused also told investigators that he occasionally lent the garage key to workers.

In its judgment, the court found that although both men had access to the garage, the prosecution had failed to establish that the cigarettes were actually in their possession or under their control.

It also noted that the two accused had given substantially the same version of events independently, having been kept apart during the investigation and therefore unable to coordinate their accounts.

The court stressed that merely having access to premises where illegal goods are found does not automatically amount to possession. It further observed that the investigation had not excluded the possibility that other individuals had access to the garage, leaving reasonable doubt as to who was responsible for the contraband.

Finding that the prosecution had not discharged its burden of proof in the criminal proceedings, the court acquitted both men of all charges.

The accused were being represented by lawyers Arthur Azzopardi and Roberto Montalto.