Updated | Man in custody at Mount Carmel commits suicide • PN: 'Minister must resign'

A 45-year-old Englishman who was being held under arrest at Mount Carmel committed suicide earlier this morning.

MaltaToday is informed that the hospital staff at the forensic unit raised the alarm at around 5.30am. He had been arrested for drug-related offences.

This is the third suicide committed by a prisoner or an individual being held by the police.

The death was confirmed by the Ministry for Home Affairs. It said that the prisoner passed away at Mater Dei Hospital despite attempts by Mount Carmel’s staff and paramedics to save his life.

Police investigations and a magisterial inquiry led by Magistrate Gabriella Vella are underway.

The Home Affairs Ministry said it will carry out a parallel internal inquiry. 

The Englishman’s death has sparked calls for the resignation of Minister Carmelo Abela. Shadow minister Beppe Fenech Adami said Abela must shoulder responsibility for these three deaths in three months.

“No democratic country accepts the death of three persons under arrest in three months. And no democratic country allows the responsible minister to stay on,” he said.

Fenech Adami said a minister shouldn’t hide behind a magisterial inquiry that takes long to conclude and may not necessarily be published.

“Abela must shoulder responsibility for accountability’s and credibility’s sake. The public has now realised that, behind the façade of sweet words, lies an incompetent minister who has lost all control,” the PN deputy leader added.