As the police’s overtime scandal unfolds, fingers are starting to point at the traffic section’s Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cassar.

So far, Cassar has not been suspended or arrested. However, he would have been ultimately responsible for signing off overtime sheets.

Each time a police officer logs overtime, it must be signed off by four high ranking individuals, in this order: Sergeant Major, Inspector, Superintendent and Assistant Commissioner.

Some have already called for responsibility to be shoulder by the Deputy Commissioner, who happens to be Malta’s Acting Police Commissioner Carmelo Magri.

However, police sources who spoke to Lovin Malta said they did not agree with this assessment.

“The Deputy Commissioner is based in the depot and does not get involved in signing off overtime. He is reliant on the four other ranks below him, but most importantly his Assistant Commissioner. If there is someone who should have known what was going on, it would have been Anthony Cassar,” sources told Lovin Malta.

The sources said Commissioner Magri, like Lawrence Cutajar before him, would have probably been left in the dark on what was happening.

“In fact, both of them were very comfortable taking action. Cutajar began investigating as soon as the whistleblower report was filed and took things very seriously. And when Magri replaced him, things were taken to another level and arrests were made,” sources told Lovin Malta.

Cassar was promoted to his role in September 2018. Before him, the role was occupied by Mario Tonna who had resigned after being accused of domestic violence.

The scandal has so far resulted in around 40 arrests of traffic police officers but is now likely to be widened to other sections of the force and is expected to implicate more officers.

Lovin Malta yesterday reported that some officers even demanded sexual favours in return for having fines forgiven.

“This is going to explode in all the special branches within the police force. Up until now, everyone has been happy-go-lucky, but everyone from the Rapid Intervention Unit (RIU) and beyond will be investigated,” sources told Lovin Malta.

Meanwhile, Energy Minister Michael Farrugia, who was Police Minister until a few weeks ago, has refused to shoulder political responsibility, despite the fact that he was also the minister who introduced a policy which allowed people with a criminal record to join the police force.