During a patrol in via Palermo, Catania, dog-unit officers saw a young man throw objects from his balcony at the sight of the police.[1] The police dog Ares sniffed out hashish pellets the 21-year-old had tossed in an attempt to get rid of them, and officers recovered and seized the pellets.[1]

Back-up was called and a search of the young man’s bedroom found thirteen large bags of marijuana weighing more than 9 kilograms inside the wardrobe, plus a precision scale and small bags for packing doses.[1] The seized drugs were to go to Scientific Police laboratories for analysis by specialist staff.[1]

The 21-year-old Catania man was arrested for possession of narcotics with intent to deal; after the duty prosecutor was informed he was held in the Questura’s security cells awaiting a fast-track hearing.[1] The courts validated the arrest and ordered him to report regularly to the judicial police.[1]