The registration number of the car that blocked the helipad at St Luke's Hospital when a medical evacuation from Gozo was to take place last August has disappeared from the records, The Malta Independent on Sunday has discovered.

This disappearance has hindered this newspaper's efforts to identify the culprit, who, by all indications, has yet to face disciplinary or criminal proceedings over an incident which could have cost someone's life. The patient who was being transferred from Gozo to Malta for treatment ended up dying; however, Mater Dei officials have insisted that the incident made no difference to the situation.

The case is subject to a magisterial inquiry, but three-and-a-half months on, no findings have been made public.

In the absence of any developments, The Malta Independent on Sunday carried out its own investigations into the case and earlier this month it confirmed that the culprit was a Malta Enterprise official. Information on the identity of the culprit - believed to be one of the government agency's most senior officials - could not be independently confirmed.

Since then, the newspaper has seen Mater Dei Hospital's helicopter log book relating to the incident, which took place on the morning of 9 August. The log book not only provides a chronological account of what had happened on the day, but also provides an important lead: the offending vehicle's registration number.

Armed with this information, this newspaper ran the registration number through Transport Malta's (TM) database, to obtain data including the identity of the car's owner - which could help lead to the identification of the culprit.

But the result of this search came as a surprise: the registration number is nowhere to be found in TM's records.

For obvious reasons, a database of vehicle registration numbers is also available to the police, and the number was also checked through the police's own database.

But the result was the same: the registration number was no longer a valid one.

Why would Malta Enterprise borrow a private car?

The helicopter log book, in fact, shows that the registration number was in the police records on the day of the incident, as the car's owner had been contacted by the police on the morning of the incident.

But the car's owner denied responsibility, according to the log: the police were told that the car had been loaned to Malta Enterprise (ME) and that the owner had no idea who was responsible for the car at this time.

The car had originally been reported to be a rented silver Ford Focus, but the log book confirms that it is, in fact, a private car with a personalised number plate. The make and colour of the car is not mentioned in the log book.

The arrangement raises questions, as one would expect a government agency such as Malta Enterprise to purchase or lease any vehicles it might need.

It is difficult to imagine why anyone would lend a car to a government agency with a multi-million euro budget for free, as operating an unauthorised vehicle hire service is an offence which can incur a €10,000 fine.

ME's use of a private vehicle in lieu of a rental car, even at no cost, could also fall foul of public procurement regulations, which suggest that such an arrangement - procuring goods directly from the open market - can only be justified if the procurement is urgent and there are restrictions of choice and availability, which is unlikely in the case of cars for hire.

All this, however, assumes the assertion that the owner of the car was truthful in declaring that he or she had no idea who was involved. The disappearance of the registration number from the records, making it harder to identify the owner, may suggest otherwise.

Unless any foul play has taken place, registration numbers should disappear from the record either if the car is scrapped or garaged, or if the number plate is changed at the owner's request.

Not all registration numbers are actually in Transport Malta's database, but those that are not are believed to be linked to the security services and few in number: it is unlikely that such a privilege would be extended to Malta Enterprise officials. One would also assume that Malta Enterprise would not borrow a car that is fit for the scrapheap.

On the other hand, however, changing the number plates of a car involved in such an incident would be highly suspect. There would be no reason for the owner to try to cover his or her tracks if the car was innocently lent to Malta Enterprise.

Ultimately, therefore, the disappearance of the registration number in question suggests that an attempt has been made to make it difficult to identify who had actually blocked the hospital helipad, an act which can lead to grave consequences in cases of an emergency.

Whether such a ploy has hindered the inquiry that was launched after the incident remains to be seen, but the fact that no findings have yet been published - and no perpetrator has apparently been identified yet - does little to assuage concerns.