Mystery surrounds police inability to identify workplace victim, magisterial inquiry ongoing

Police will not say how the victim of a Marsa workplace accident remained unidentified until he was flagged as missing a few days after his death.

The victim has since been identified as Ahmed Diriye, a Somali immigrant who was reported missing by relatives and friends on Christmas Day.

“Kindly note that a magisterial Inquiry is ongoing in relation to the accident at Marsa and thus it would not be prudent to provide further information at this stage,” the police told MaltaToday. The inquiry is being led by Magistrate Leonard Caruana.

On the day of the accident that happened on 22 December at around noon, the police had communicated the news to the media. But the news release said the victim, who had sustained serious injuries after falling more than a storey, was unidentified.

The police released no subsequent update but in replies to MaltaToday insist he “remained unidentified until he was issued as missing to the media” on Monday.

But questions about Diriye’s employer and whether they cooperated with the police to establish the victim’s identity remained unanswered.

It was nurses who treated Diriye in hospital who recognised him from the photo disseminated by the police as part of the missing person’s report. He had died two or three days earlier.

In hospital, Diriye remained without a name and nurses referred to him as Mr X although they knew he was being treated for injuries sustained in a fall.

The police would not say whether any identity papers were found on Diriye or whether internal police procedures to establish a person’s identity will be reviewed in view of this case.

READ ALSO: Ahmed Diriye - a victim of the black economy who died alone and unknown