Home Affairs Minister refuses to comment on Zammit family of officers

Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela has so far refused to comment on the findings of an inquiry by Judge Michael Mallia, arguing that the report had now been passed on to the authorities for their analysis.

“The inquiry by Judge Mallia was sent by the Prime Minister to the Attorney General and the Commissioner for Police, the competent authorities responsible to analyse the outcome of the report and take all actions deemed necessary.  The internal police inquiry is still ongoing,” a spokesperson for the Home Affairs Ministry said.

The inquiry focused on the unethical behaviour of Zammit’s family of police officers who had business interests with the Gaffarena family. Ray Zammit’s son Daniel Zammit acted as prosecuting officer on murder charges against Joe Gaffarena’s son-in-law.

Read more: Summary of the report by Judge Michael Mallia

The ministry’s comment came in reply to questions sent by this newspaper, after MaltaToday asked the minister to comment about the fact that Daniel Zammit was removed from the Economic Crimes Unit by Commissioner of Police John Rizzo, who stationed him in Valletta, and then was reposted in the ECU on ministerial pressure in 2013.

The spokesperson added that the same reply applied to former acting police commissioner Ray Zammit. Zammit is also acting director at the Corradino Correctional Facility and head of the local enforcement agency.

Following the publication of the Mallia inquiry, the opposition denounced the government’s “silence” on the report, arguing that the least thing that the Home Affairs Minister could have done was react to the findings.

“It is unacceptable that 24 hours after the publication of the report on the Zammit family’s ties to shady characters, the Home Affairs Minister remains silent,” PN deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami said.

The opposition yesterday also said that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat should be the one to shoulder political responsibility for the “incompetence, corruption and scandals”.

It added that Raymond Zammit should be immediately removed from any public position he currently holds.

Daniel Zammit’s name first rose to prominence after it emerged that he had been boarded out on medical grounds in April, only to land a €60,000 job at Enemalta – a positon which he was instantly removed from by the Energy Minister – four days later.

At the time, the media spotlight was on Marco Gaffarena and the €1.65 million expropriation deal he landed over a property in Old Mint Street. It then emerged that Daniel Zammit – and his brother and inspector Roderick Zammit – had business ties with members of the Gaffarena family.

It then transpired that at the time that Daniel Zammit was the prosecuting officer in a 2008 murder charge, he shared business ties with the accused’s father-in-law: Daniel Zammit was co-prosecutor in a case against Stephen Caruana, who had murdered his ex-wife’s lover. His former wife was Romina Gaffarena.

Adding to the whole saga was also a piece of land which the Zammit brothers bought in June 2009. Daniel and Roderick Zammit purchased a Bahrija field from Alfred Chircop, for €11,650 – Chircop himself purchased the land from the Gaffarena family firm Alfaclass Developers: he happens to be an uncle of Marco Gaffarena’s wife.

Then in 2011, MEPA granted a permit for the demolition and construction of a block of apartments where the 2008 murder took place. The murder case is still pending before the courts.