Jean Paul Sofia’s Mother Slams Return Of Accused Official To Government Role
The mother of Jean Paul Sofia has condemned the reinstatement of a senior Lands Authority official who is facing criminal charges over her son’s death.
Isabelle Bonnici revealed in a Facebook post on Sunday night that Lands Minister Owen Bonnici had informed her that Kurt Buhagiar has been back at work at the Lands Authority for several weeks.
Buhagiar is one of five people charged over the fatal collapse of a timber factory in Corradino in 2022. Jean Paul Sofia, who was just 20 years old, lost his life in the collapse. Three others were seriously injured.
The site of the incident was on government-leased land. The factory was being developed by Allplus Limited, a company set up by Buhagiar and co-accused Matthew Schembri shortly before they were granted the lease by INDIS Malta.
Isabelle Bonnici said the minister told her the decision to reinstate Buhagiar had been taken before his time as Lands Minister, during Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi’s term.
“Obviously, I do not agree,” Bonnici wrote, “because as far as I know, to apply for a job one must have a clean criminal record. This person already had another case, was found guilty and even imprisoned according to media reports.”
The collapse at Corradino was caught on CCTV. The footage showed the structure suddenly imploding. Jean Paul was found under the rubble after a 14-hour search.
Initially, the government had refused to back an Opposition motion for a public inquiry into the case. That decision was later reversed by Prime Minister Robert Abela, who ordered the inquiry and apologised to the family for his earlier lack of support.
Bonnici reminded the public that her son died on government land that had been given to people who are now facing serious criminal charges.
“The government did not protect my son when he was alive,” she wrote, “and now it continues to disrespect his memory by returning those accused of his death to trusted positions.”