Police Commissioner Angelo Gafa refrained from giving comments on the case against former EU Commissioner John Dalli, saying that he is precluded at law to publicly discuss individual cases and will say what he needs to say in court.

John Dalli has been charged in court over an alleged attempt to solicit a €60 million bribe to help overturn an EU-wide ban on snun, a form of smokeless tobacco when he was EU Commissioner for Health. The first sitting in the case took place on Friday, however, this was adjourned after less than an hour of courtoom debate over after the AG's office said it needs to check whether Dalli enjoys diplomatic immunity as a former EU official.

Gafa was being interviewed by Andrew Azzopardi on Saturday on 103 Malta’s Heart radio station.

Seventeen months after his appointment, Gafa was asked about the results achieved and the changes that have been made over the past year.

Gafa was asked whether former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is being investigated, following a call made by Opposition Leader Bernard Grech. He said that he cannot discuss such matters and will stay away from engaging in any political debate.

“17 months ago I accepted the challenge of leading the Malta Police Force with the aim and commitment of seeing it renewed. Our society is dynamic, so if the Police Force is not renewed, it will no longer be relevant,” Gafa said.

Gafa explained that in the past year he worked on implementing a transformation strategy for the Police Force which revolves around gaining people’s trust.

Before Gafa was appointed Police Commissioner, the people’s trust in the Police Force stood at 49%, but this has increased by 11%, as the figure now stands at 60%.

“The public seems to be noticing the increase in work being carried out by the police, especially the direct contact of the police with the public through the community policing programme.”

“We do not want to knock on people’s doors solely to arrest a person or to deliver bad news. We want to knock on people’s doors to see whether anyone needs help and to identify the problems that exist in a particular locality so we can deal with them,” Gafa said.

He emphasised that the main goal of the community policing is not to instil fear in people but to increase their trust in the Police Force. The aim is for the police to be proactive, rather than reactive.

“The Malta Police Force cannot be effective without the support and trust of the community,” Gafa said.

Speaking about the significant number of inmates in Malta’s prison, Gafa highlighted that one of the duties that the police has is to implement criminal law. However, there should then be a balance between criminal and judicial processes.

The victim should be brought to justice but the system also needs to operate in a way of ensuring that the offender does not repeat the act to the extent of dangering or affecting other victims, Gafa added.

The Attorney General has the power to be a prosecutor within the courts, in relation to any crime. Asked whether the police feels that it does a lot of work for nothing when offenders are freed, Gafa noted that this situation still happens and will always remain.

He expained that when an investigation is brought before the courts, the police unit working on that particular case invests a lot of time and resources. Therefore, it goes without saying that a sense of dissapointment is felt when the court decides to acquit the offender. However, there are a number of freedoms in place and the Criminal Code provides a range of punishments which is also relevant in such a situation.

He also higlighted that any allegations which are brought to the attention of the Police Force are immediately investigated. However, one must understand the complexity that comes with bringing a case before the courts.

Meanwhile, in recent weeks the civil society NGO Repubblika, held a number of protests including a three-day sit-in in front of the Police headquarters to protest against a lack of action taken by Gafa against former Minister Konrad Mizzi.

Gafa said he respects everyone in society, including those who choose to make their voice heard.

“As Police Commissioner, I do not have the privilege of expressing a personal opinion. I have to be neutral and cannot in one way or another engage in any sort of political debate. I will have to remain silent in the light of such a situation,” Gafa said.

On Wednesday Colonel Alex Dalli suspended himself from his position as CEO of the Correctional Services Agency with immediate effect. The suspension came after the suspected suicide of an inmate overnight – the 14th death of an inmate under Dalli’s watch.

Asked whether he was consulted by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri as to what particular action should be taken in prison, Gafa confirmed that he was not consulted on the matter and refused to say whether Dalli was under investigation.

He confirmed that the police were involved in the magisterial inquiries into the recent inmate suicides.

In addition, Gafa also highlighted the types of crimes that Malta is facing, noting that certain cirmes, such as domestic violence will always remain. However, Malta is also facing an increase in crimes related to online fraud due to the development in technology. These crimes are more complex to investigate.