Six shots fired in Ghar Hasan shootout

Police Commissioner John Rizzo this evening revealed that six shots were fired during the shootout at Ghar Hasan this morning.

"The first two were warning shots, which failed as the man still moved towards the officer waving the knife in air. The officer was forced to fire another two shots, which again failed to stop him. It was only after the officer fired the fifth and sixth shot that the man retracted and headed back towards the cave," Rizzo said.

The incident happened this morning at around 7:15am at Ghar Hasan in Birzebbugia. While the area is cordoned off, due to the falling rocks of the cliff and is considered to be dangerous to the public, the police had received reports that someone might be living in one of the caves.

The Commissioner said he could not give a date to when the reports were made.

As three officers from the mobile squad were doing the rounds of the area this morning, the officers stopped to check the caves at Ghar Hasan, where a man was found to be living in one of the inner caves, Rizzo said.

Suleiman Samake, a 26-year-old migrant from Mali, was asked to come out of his hiding. "When the police asked him to go out with them, he started shouting incomprehensible words which didn't make any sense and, out of the blue, he pulled out a knife which he started waving at one of the officers," Rizzo said.

He added that the knife had a nine-inch blade. "He started exclaiming 'My God' and 'God tell me', as he advanced towards one of the officers," Rizzo said.

At that point, the officer nearer to Samake produced a pepper spray, but it reportedly had little affect on the man as he continued to advance towards one of the officers.

"The officer was forced to use his gun," Rizzo said, adding that a second officer in the meantime had called for backup and requested instructions.

The Commissioner also confirmed that it was the same officer who called for backup that filmed the incident with his mobile phone. The footage is being examined as well.

Asked what the third officer was doing, the Commissioner said that all three officers had gotten out of the car and together headed towards the cave. However, until further investigations, nothing else could be said.

After Samake was hit, he fell and quickly got up and ran towards the cave. The officers went after him and ordered him to come out. Samake came out, this time without the knife.

"He was hit in the thigh and on the right side of his belly button, where the bullet went right through. He received first assistance from the police until a medical team arrived.

"He was operated at Mater Dei. He is stable, even though he was in critical condition," Rizzo said.

The Police Commissioner was not in a position to say when Samake came to Malta, but said he had joined the Hal Far open centre in February 2010 and left in August 2011.

Rizzo was also not in a position to confirm or deny whether it was true that Samake had undergone psychiatric care in Malta.

The Police also could not say whether any belongings or food or other items were found in the cave.