According to the Malta Security Service (MSS), travel restrictions and supply chain shocks forced Maltese organised crime groups to adapt. The agency gave an overview of the local drugs market in its annual report for 2020 which were tabled in parliament last week. The service explained that the mitigation efforts introduced at the start of COVID-19 forced organised crime groups to rethink their trafficking methods. 

“The COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed lifestyles. The virus, as well as a variety of measures taken by authorities around the world to control the pandemic, affected all aspects of our lives. Like what happened in other countries, Maltese authorities introduced a number of restrictions on travel that affected the modus operandi of OCGs when trafficking contraband and other illegal items.’

Several trade routes used by suppliers to smuggle drugs into Malta were identified by a separate government study. Heroin of Afghan origin is imported through Turkey, North Africa or Western European countries whereas cocaine is smuggled mostly through Spain. MDMA, ecstasy and amphetamine, among other synthetic drugs, are imported from other European countries particularly Italy and the Netherlands. The MSS said that a number of routes and methods exist for drug importation and to bring in contraband.

‘Since the drug market was sometimes use legal markets to hide products, with the pandemic measures, some routes became problematic for these OCGs to import products into Malta. This is why they had to adapt to the new reality by using other methods’ it was revealed. 

Restrictions imposed by local authorities on where importers order their product also cause supply problems. Despite drugs being available, stricter measures meant drug suppliers could not export their products as they normally did. 

Local narcotics expert Dr Godwin Sammut reported there was a major decrease in drug seizures at the start of the pandemic, even though there was no change in the purity of drugs tested in his lab over the span of the pandemic. Since there were no parties and airports closed, imported supplies and seizures almost stopped completely. According to the International Journal of Drug Policy, a study using 250 self-reporting submissions on illicit drug transactions found that the pandemic disrupted the illicit drug market. This tracked the date of the purchase and whether the drug successfully shipped to its intended location. 

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