Only five magisterial inquiries on 12 prison deaths since 2018 concluded

Majority of magisterial inquiries into prison deaths remain open • From the five concluded inquiries, four deaths were attributed to natural causes and one was a suicide

Prison Director Alex Dalli
Prison Director Alex Dalli

Only five magisterial inquiries from the 12 initiated since 2018 following the death of prison inmates have been concluded.

Inquiry conclusions seen by MaltaToday show that out of these five deaths, one was a suicide and the other four were attributed to natural causes by pathologists.

Four of the five concluded inquiries concern the deaths that happened at the Corradino Correctional Facility last year. The other concerns a death that happened in 2018.

In each of the four certified natural deaths, pathologists who performed the autopsies concluded that the men died from various heart problems.

The magisterial conclusions found no evidence of neglect by the prison authorities in all five deaths.

In the case of Pakistani national Ihtisham Ihtisham, who was found dead in his cell at CCF on 19 November 2020, the pathologists certified his death as being caused by a disease of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathy) that can lead to sudden death.

The Pakistani’s sudden death caused outrage last year with family members insisting that he did not suffer from any medical condition.

Blood tests found no traces of illegal substances, with pathologists noting that in more than a quarter of cases like those of Ihtisham Ihtisham, “genetic factors” played a role.

His death came hot on the heels of two other deaths in prison, one of them a suicide, just two months earlier.

The inmate who performed suicide last year had stayed inside his cell, as was his right, in the one-hour break given to prisoners between 4pm and 5pm. He was found dead by his cellmate, who raised the alarm.

The magisterial inquiry concluded that there was no foul play and the pathologists’ report put the death down to asphyxia due to hanging.

The fifth inquiry to be concluded is that concerning the death of a 35-year-old man in June 2018. Despite the inmate’s relatively young age, the pathologists’ report identified “coronary artery thrombosis” as the cause of death.

The CCF administration has been under pressure over the past few years as a result of the number of deaths among inmates.

Since June 2018 there have been 12 deaths in prison. These include the death of a 29-year-old woman last Sunday, who was admitted to hospital after attempting suicide three weeks earlier.

The woman, who was waiting to enter a drug rehabilitation programme was sent to prison last February. She was being followed by the prison’s medical staff and was receiving methadone treatment. At law, drug addicts would have to serve at least six months in jail before being able to join a drug rehab programme.

The authorities have said that the victim’s dependency on methadone had been reduced gradually and a few days before the attempted suicide, the woman had seen a psychiatrist, who reported that she was doing good progress. No risk of suicide was mentioned.

The Home Affairs Ministry has denied the woman was being kept in solitary confinement.

A magisterial inquiry is underway.

The latest death has raised concern on the state of the CCF, which is run with an iron fist by prison director Alex Dalli, a former military colonel.

He has been in charge since 2018 and came under pressure for his disciplinarian methods with the Opposition even calling for his removal.

The Council of Europe’s Annual Penal Statistics on Prison Populations for 2020 show that Malta had the highest suicide rate in prisons at 25.2 per 10,000 inmates in 2019. Only Iceland’s was higher but the country was excluded from the league table because of its relatively small population.

Government has yet to issue a reaction to the report, which is currently being studied.

Four of the pending magisterial inquiries since 2018 concern cases that are suspected to be suicide.

The prisoners who died since 2018

7 June, 2018 – Mamadou Sakine, 35

Sakine was in preventive arrest on rape accusations. He was residing in Division 3, Cell 150 and was found unconscious inside his cell at around 6:30am by prison guards. According to the magisterial inquiry led by Magistrate Joe Mifsud, the man died at Mater Dei Hospital at around 7:41am. At the time of his death, Sakine, a Muslim, was fasting since it was Ramadan. Blood tests found no illicit substances in Sakine’s blood. Pathologists who carried out the autopsy said the death was “provisionally certified as being due to natural causes, namely coronary artery thrombosis”.

11 December, 2018 – Seajay Cardona, 26

Cardona was serving time in prison for assaulting his ex-partner. His death is suspected to be a suicide. The magisterial inquiry into his death is still ongoing. The inquiry started under Magistrate Audrey Demicoli but has to be assigned to someone else since she became a judge.

26 December, 2018 – Steven Farrugia, 34

Farrugia was in prison on several convictions, including drugs and theft. He was found unconscious in his cell, hours after complaining of chest pain and asking for painkillers. Inquiry is still ongoing.

13 March, 2019 – Noel Calleja, 39

Calleja was in prison pending his trial for attempted murder and domestic violence. His death is suspected to be a suicide. Inquiry is still ongoing.

27 October, 2019 – Mario Jean-Paul Carmelo Fenech

Fenech was found unconscious in his cell and taken to hospital, where he died. His death is suspected to be a suicide. The inquiry started under Magistrate Audrey Demicoli but has to be assigned to someone else since she became a judge.

25 November, 2019 – Francis Formosa, 49

Formosa died after being found unconscious in his cell with no signs of external violence. The magisterial inquiry led by Yana Micallef Stafrace is still ongoing.

29 November, 2019 – Ben Ali Wahid Ben Hassine, 57

Hassine was serving a life sentence for the four murders he committed in 1988. Reports at the time suggested that he attempted suicide. He died at Mater Dei Hospital several days after being hospitalised but no inquiry was launched.

24 February, 2020 - John Attard, 72

Attard was an accomplice in the stabbing of traffic warden Fortunata Spiteri, 19 years ago.

Attard was being held in Division 1, Cell 58 and his lifeless body was found at 6:55am. Medical experts appointed by Magistrate Joe Mifsud certified that Attard died of natural causes. Pathologists indicated the cause of death as “coronary artery disease and myocardial hypertrophy”.

5 September, 2020 – Gordon Calleja, 45

Calleja had been charged over the attempted murder of a pastizzi shop seller. He was found dead in his cell. The authorities said he died of natural causes. Calleja was being held in Division 12, Cell 21 and his lifeless body was found at around 7:10am.

Medical experts appointed by Magistrate Neville Camilleri concluded that the cause of death was “acute myocardial insufficiency secondary to ischaemic heart disease (problems caused by narrowed heart arteries)”. The death was described as a natural death.

7 September, 2020 – Nazzareno Mifsud, 57

Mifsud was facing extradition proceedings to be sent to the US where he was wanted for molesting two boys. He was being held in Division 3, Cell 118 along with another inmate.

The magisterial inquiry led by Magistrate Charmaine Galea established that between 4pm and 5pm, as was his right, Mifsud decided to remain inside his cell during the break period.

When his cellmate returned at 5pm, he found Mifsud hanging by a tie from his bed. The man was given initial treatment in prison and transferred to Mater Dei Hospital shortly afterwards but attempts to resuscitate him proved futile.

Doctors said the cause of death was “asphyxia due to hanging”.

19 November, 2020 – Ihtisham Ihtisham, 25

Pakistani national Ihtisham Ihtisham was serving a six-month jail term for being in possession of a forged identity document. He was found dead in his cell.

Ihtisham was being held in Division 2, Cell 56 and was found dead at 6:30am.

Pathologists appointed by Magistrate Charmaine Galea pinned down the cause of death to a “cardiomyopathy” that was consistent with “dilated cardiomyopathy (a disease of the heart muscle)”. The medical experts said there were numerous causes for the disease, although “genetic factors play a role in up to 25%-35% of cases”. They said the disease can lead to “sudden cardiac death”.

The inquiry said no illegal substances were found in the victim’s blood and no prima facie evidence of any neglect by the CCF resulted.

4 July, 2021 – Kim Borg, 29

Borg, a drug addict, was incarcerated last February for two years after being found guilty of theft. She had been receiving methadone treatment in prison and was waiting to be placed in a drug rehabilitation programme. She was found unconscious in her cell, in what prison authorities described as a suicide attempt. She died three weeks later at Mater Dei Hospital where she was receiving treatment. A magisterial inquiry is ongoing.