The police have told this newspaper that there is nothing to indicate that the former Jerma Palace Hotel site in Marsascala is being used as an entry point by Syrian migrants.

The claims were made a couple of weeks ago by the website Corpi d’Elite (click here) – a portal usually dedicated to Special Operations forces an anti-terrorism operations. It published footage of a ‘Sensitive Site Exploration’ it carried out in the dilapidated hotel, where it found the building to be strewn with items of clothing, including children’s’ clothes, as well as a discarded suitcase.

Corpi d’elite said it had published the article following an eight-month investigation, claiming that it had uncovered a people smuggling ring that uses the old hotel as a drop off point.

It said that it had first received information about the operation back in March, when Syrian nationals gave information claiming to have used the Jerma Palace as an entry point to Malta. The migrants said they arrived in Maltese territorial waters aboard small boats and berthed at the small quay which was part of the hotel grounds. They told the website that they arrived at a 1am and that they were picked up by relatives already in Malta.

One woman Syrian woman, accompanied by her three children claimed to have paid €4,000 to a Libyan smuggler in return for passage to Malta.  She told the website that the boat she was on could carry 10-12 passengers. She said she was picked up from the Jerma Palace by her husband.

During the on-site investigation, the group also found several clothes lying around the outer perimeter of the hotel, many of which were children’s garments. It said the clothes were probably discarded by the arriving migrants, who were presumably soaking wet after the sea journey. “It is likely that in the case of the welcoming party being formed by relatives, clean and dry clothes would be made available. All the clothes and a luggage found on site were searched for items such as fiscal receipts or notes, but nothing was recovered.”

The ‘investigators’ also found that stones had been placed in some areas, allowing would-be migrants to scale the walls with ease and exit the compound. It says that the areas where the migrants landed were not visible from the public road since the whole area was hidden behind the multi-storey building.

But in comments to The Malta Independent, a police spokesperson said “the area in question was inspected by the police and nothing noticed indicated that this place was used for the disembarking of illegal immigrants.”

The last time there was an official report of migrants landing in Marsascala was in July 2009, when 44 migrants disembarked at the Jerma.