Lee Roy Balzan Engerer, a police sergeant, today was accused of tampering with evidence related to the shooting incident involving the driver of Minister Manuel Mallia. He has been denied bail.

The sergeant was charged with preventing the input of data, changing, deleting or adding official data, revealing a password to give access to official files to unauthorised personnel, committing crimes that are damaging to the government, prejudicing his senior and committing a crime he was duty bound to prevent. He pleaded not guilty.

His lawyer, Franco Debono, argued that Leeroy himself indicated to police during investigations that they should check the CCTV cameras to verify that he was not inside the police station when the Briton’s breathalyser report was deleted. The Briton, Stephen Smith, is the one whose car was shot at after it clipped the minister's car which was parked in Gzira.

When asked by the court what his job description is, Leeroy said he was a police constable until some time ago.

Magistrate Francesco Depasquale denied bail in view of the nature of the crimes.

Police Inspector Sandro Camilleri prosecuted. Inspector Daniel Zammit, the commissioner’s son, was also present in the courtroom.

Mr Balzan Engerer is one of two police officers who were suspended on suspicion of tampering with evidence. The sergeant was investigated over the deletion of parts of a police report which allegedly confirmed that Steve Morrison Smith was three times over the alcohol limit when he was chased by Paul Sheehan in Manuel Mallia's official car. An inspector is on forced leave over suspicions that he removed spent bullet cartridges from one of the crime scenes and asking witnesses to hand over footage of the incident they had filmed on a mobile phone. 

Photo Jonathan Borg