New evidence contradicts allegations that soldiers sabotaged migrant dinghy

New evidence handed over to the magistrate probing soldiers accused of sabotaging a migrant dinghy suggests the army personnel acted correctly at all times.

The evidence, in the form of fresh information, was presented in the acts of the inquiry on Tuesday by NGO Repubblika that filed a report asking the police to investigate the allegations made against the soldiers.

The request was based on claims first made by rescue assistance NGO Alarmphone that Maltese soldiers had tried to sabotage a migrant dinghy at sea. The migrants were eventually rescued by the Armed Forces of Malta and brought to Malta.

Sources close to the inquiry told MaltaToday that the NGO was tipped off with fresh information that could shed a different light on what actually happened on the high seas.

“There is nothing in the information that the magisterial inquiry would not have discovered but it appears that somebody wanted to try and save Repubblika’s face,” the sources said.

The evidence surrounds the claim that a soldier cut off the migrant dinghy’s outboard engine cable in a bid to sabotage the boat.

It is understood that the cable in question was the normal safety device, known as a kill switch, which de-activates the engine in case of emergency.

This is a normal procedure in rescue operations to avoid any harm to the people on the boat and the rescuers.

Contacted by MaltaToday, lawyer Herman Mula, who was contracted by the General Workers Union to represent the soldiers, said he was more than convinced that his clients acted within normal protocols and not as has been alleged.

Mula would not comment any further, insisting that he was certain the inquiry would establish all the facts.

The officers manning the P52 patrol boat were questioned yesterday and more army officials testified today in front of Magistrate Joe Mifsud, who is leading the criminal inquiry.

The magistrate is also probing allegations against the Prime Minister and the army commander that Malta reneged on its duty to rescue migrant boats that were in its search and rescue area – the reference here is to a different case involving a boat that was eventually rescued by a commercial vessel and on which 12 people died.

Alarm Phone's tweet on 9 April when the claims of sabotage were first made

On 9 April, Alarm Phone alleged that migrants in distress had called them with claims that soldiers from the patrol boat P52 had “cut the cable of the motor” and left them to die in the water.

The NGO shared its story with The Guardian and the New York Times that ran with the stories blaming the Maltese military for sabotaging the migrant boat.

However, former military personnel with knowledge of rescue operations have told MaltaToday the story of sabotage was “unbelievable” given the mere fact that the same migrants were eventually rescued by the AFM and brought to Malta.

The 66 migrants rescued on that day were the last group to be brought ashore before Malta declared its ports closed because of the COVID-19 emergency.

Clarification:

An earlier version of this report said Repubblika filed charges with the police. This is incorrect because charges can only be filed by the police. The group actually filed a report with the police asking them to investigate the allegations.