Maltese Police Commissioner Candidate Passes On Documents To Prove He Did Not Purchase Car From A Man He Once Investigated
Police CEO Angelo Gafa, considered to be one of the favourites for the candidate of Malta’s next Police Commissioner, has passed on invoices and cheques to disprove allegations that he purchased a car from a man he started investigating close to 13 years ago, Lovin Malta can reveal.
Behind the scenes, Gafa has been facing serious rumours over his relationship with an auto dealer who walked free despite admitting to charges of falsifying documents. Gafa, who was an inspector back then, refuted the claims with Lovin Malta and insisted that the decision was out of his hands. However, PN MP Jason Azzopardi took to social media to raise some more questions.
After quoting a part of the judgement which said that the prosecutor (Gafa) declared that he would rely on evidence and not present a final submission, Azzopardi sarcastically said:
“Obviously there is no connection between the Nissan Juke and this case. There isn’t even a connection between a promise that he wouldn’t take action against the corrupt Joseph Muscat, Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri.”
However, Lovin Malta has seen an invoice and cheque showing that the car was purchased from Noel’s Auto Dealer and not the man Gafa investigated.
“I don’t want to stay playing political games but I have to make things clear to people out there that these claims aren’t true. There’s a lot being said about all the candidates and we need to make sure that the next commissioner can go into the role without unaddressed issues. It’s important these questions are asked and it’s more important that we address them head-on,” he explained.
Invoice
Facing questions on the case itself, Gafa said he had “no ammunition left given the circumstances emerging from the case”, pointing to the case itself to explain himself.
Despite admitting to the crimes under interrogation from Gafa, documents show that the accused later refuted his statement in court, telling a judge that he gave that version to the then-inspector in order to leave the station because of his health issues. Meanwhile, a court expert agreed that it could not be proven that the accused had falsified the documents. Other claims could also not be confirmed.
Eight years after the case closed, Gafa did attend the birthday party of the accused on the invitation of his wife, Inspector Sylvana Gafa of the Victim Supports Unit. However, he said this was because she had helped a relative of the auto dealer’s wife in a challenging case.
Gafa has also denied claims that he holidayed with the person involved and ever brought a car down to Malta from a foreign country together.
Cheque
The race for the Police Commissioner is clearly heating up. Fourteen candidates have reportedly applied for the role and Gafa’s not the only one having to defend themselves. Lawyer Mary Muscat has also denied claims that she obtained her law degree while skiving from police work.
So far, Gafa, Muscat, Herman Mula, Frankie Sammut, Assistant Commissioner Alexandra Mamo, legal procurator Sandro Camilleri, and Inspectors Robert Vella and Jonathan Ransley have confirmed that they applied.
Disgraced former assistant police commissioner Mario Tonna has also applied. Others who are rumoured to have submitted an application are former police superintendent Raymond Zammit, former police officer Emanuel Cassar, Vice Squad Police Inspector Joseph Busuttil, banker Leo Busuttil, and Captain Reuben Lanfranco.
The applicants will be whittled down to a final two, with Cabinet then selecting a final candidate who will have to face a parliamentary grilling before they can be appointed.
Despite the long list, Gafa is one of the favourites for the position. He is Malta’s first-ever Police Force CEO, having previously worked as an inspector, most notably on the investigation into former Minister and EU Commissioner John Dalli. Gafa also has previous experience with Malta’s Security Service and the Armed Forces of Malta.
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