Banner demanding justice for Jean Paul Sofia goes up in front of parliament

A banner demanding justice for construction victim Jean Paul Sofia was hung opposite parliament on Monday as the House started debating the licensing of building contractors

The banner was hung on top of the arcades at Valletta’s city gate opposite parliament.

During his parliamentary speech, Opposition leader Bernard Grech claimed the youth was arrested just moments after the banner was hung.

A police spokesperson told MaltaToday the police had received a report that a person, wearing a hoodie and a mask, was acting suspiciously in the environs of parliament.

The spokesperson said the youth fled the scene when police approached him. The fact that he fled, raised further suspicion prompting the police to stop the man.

He was taken to the police station for questioning, and released immediately when it was established there was nothing sinister about his actions. He was not even given the caution.

The spokesperson said the banner was not removed, and will remain there, because it is not an illegal act.

Sofia was killed in a construction site accident last December, after a three-storey building he was working at collapsed during construction works. Five men - three Albanian, a Maltese and a Bosnian were rescued by members of the Civil Protection Department.