Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1523079
7 maltatoday | THURSDAY • 26 JUNE 2024 NEWS KARL AZZOPARDI kazzopardi@mediatoday.com.mt MATTHEW VELLA mvella@mediatoday.com.mt A 25-year-old Dominican wom- an accused of forming part of an international drug traffick- ing ring was sentenced to seven years and six months' jail, and fined €18,000 apart from another €6,300 in court expenses. Meiby Jazmin Ramirez Gomez, from the Dominican Republic working as a chef assistant in Spain, had been charged in 2021 of trafficking some €600,000 worth of cocaine. At the time she had been charged along with Jose Angel Hernandez Perez, 47, a Vene- zuelan man, and Leonardo Jo- se Marquez Uzcategui, 40, also Venezuelan. All three were charged with importing cocaine, procure- ment and aggravated posses- sion under circumstances in- dicating that the substance was not for their personal use. Gomez was arrested first at Malta International Airport in 2021 with some 140 capsules filled with the suspected drug found inside her clothes. Data on her mobile phone as well as information that emerged during police questioning, put investigators on the tracks of two other suspects allegedly involved in the racket, ferrying drugs to Malta. The drug bust had allegedly yielded some five kilograms of cocaine with a street value of around €600,000. Dominican trafficker jailed seven years over role in €600,000 cocaine bust Spectators totalled 169,523 in Malta's football divisions during the 2022/23 season THE total number of spectators in stadia for all divisions in Mal- tese football totalled 169,523, figures released by the Malta Football Association show. The past season saw an increase of 11% in spectatorship when compared to the 2022/23 season. Figures released by the MFA showed that the Floriana vs Ħamrun Spartans match on the 27 April, attracted the biggest crowd of the season with a to- tal of 9,090 spectators making their way to Ta' Qali National Stadium. Ħamrun Spartans, Floriana, and Valletta were the biggest crowd pullers of the BOV Pre- mier League, with the MFA saying it registered an increase of 22% in spectators over the season. The club with the most for- eign players in the Premier League were champions Ħam- run Spartans, while Floriana and Naxxar Lions had the few- est. Brazil was the nation from which the most foreign pre- mier league players came from. Next year, the organisa- tion and administration of the country's top tier football league will be handed over to the Malta Premier League, in a first for Malta. The 2024/45 season will also see a new Ap- ertura and Clausura format be introduced. In the BOV Challenge a 5% increase in attendance over the 2023/24 season, with Melita vs Zabbar St Patrick being the top attended match. 1,259 specta- tors attended the match. The match between Qormi and Mgarr United was the top attended match in the IziBet Amateur League, with 403 spectators. A 9% decrease in attendance was recorded in the division. A total of 9,090 spectators attended the match Floriana vs Hamrun on 27 April (Photo: Hamrun Spartans/Facebook) The Floriana vs Ħamrun Spartans match on the 27 April, attracted the biggest crowd of the season with a total of 9,090 spectators making their way to Ta' Qali National Stadium