48-year-old Ghirxi was found dead inside her Swatar apartment last August, with the man who is believed to have murdered her, Irishman Edward Johnston, being killed by police in an early-hour standoff in St Julian's.

The Home Affairs Ministry then launched an independent investigation by the police complaints board, the recommendations of which were published on Wednesday.

In the board's opinion, based on the evidence it heard, the inquiry concluded that it does not appear that the police failed to take measures within the scope of their powers which, reasonably judged, might have been expected to avoid the risk (referring to the murder.)

The inquiry also said that the facts in this case are different from those of Bernice Cassar, whose estranged husband Roderick Cassar is accused of her murder in 2022, "although the outcome is the same."

"The board must base itself on the specifics of the case under review and the evidence it acquires. In the case of Bernice Cassar, there were many red flags, unlike in this case. The pattern in Ghirxi's case is not similar to that of Cassar," the inquiry conclusions said.

The inquiry was aimed at scrutinizing the implementation of the recommendations that emerged from the joint magisterial inquiry between the Ministry for Justice and the Ministry for Home Affairs, on February 23, 2023, carried out by the same Judge Valenzia, in relation to the murder of Bernice Cassar. 

The Police Complaints Board also analysed the operations of the Police Corps in connection with domestic violence and gender-based violence and the enforcement of relevant laws and standard operating procedures in place.

The inquiry established that on 23 April, 2024, the day after Ghirxi refused a risk assessment on her case, the Victim Support Unit called Ghirxi and offered her services and their help. However, she refused, and said she was being seen by other professionals.

The emails Ghirxi presented to the police were filled with "insults and harassment", yet the inquiry also said that these were full of empty words, and there were no threats involved.

The inquiry also established that the police did call Johnston to speak to him, but he arrogantly told them that he could not go to Malta as he was abroad in Dubai.

The police also asked for his location from a local mobile service provider on 29 April, and on 16 May, police was informed Johnston was in Ireland. Police also called Ghirxi telling her to immediately inform them if he threatens her, and things escalate.

Johnston was also put on the police's 'Wanted List' and on their system. Between May and the beginning of August, Johnston was not in Malta, the inquiry said.

The inquiry continued that between June and August, Johnston did not send any more emails to Ghirxi.

On 28 July, the inspector of the case sent letters to the Attorney General for advice on the case, due to harassment and stalking.

On 30 July, Ghirxi was called in by the Cybercrime Unit on a fake profile created with regards to prostitution services. Ghirxi sent an email to the police on 5 August, thanking them for removing the Facebook profile.

On 8 August, the inspector was informed by the AG's office that his letters were sent to an Irish Authority. That same day, Ghirxi informed the police that she realised that Johnston was in the country through a dating app, showing he was just a few kilometres away.

The inquiry established that while Ghirxi chose not to conduct a risk assessment, the proof shows that the police "did not sleep" on the case, but started an investigation on the information Ghirxi gave them, and other information they collected.

"It seems that on 8 August, the police could not do more than it had already done as Johnston seemed to be out of Malta, and Ghirxi stopped receiving emails from him," the inquiry said.

The inquiry established that between 8 August and 12 August, the day Ghirxi was killed, there was no movement from the police inspector's side, nor was there any other contact between the police and Ghirxi.

The inspector involved said that that weekend, he was busy with work on a human trafficking case, and because Ghirxi's case was "low-risk," he had not yet developed the information he had.

The inquiry said that the Board examined Ghirxi's emails and messages, and agreed with the way the inspector considered them. "Johnston was out of the country for a very long time," the inquiry said.

"When police tried contacting him, they confirmed he was out of the country. The police found his mobile location through service providers, and also looked at his email address through the letters sent to Ireland," the inquiry said.

The inquiry also said that at the stage on 8 August when Ghirxi told the police Johnston might be in Malta, the Inspector had no basis for arresting Johnston, nor did he see a risk where he needed to intervene urgently.

"The only thing he could have done was send for him to interrogate him in those 72 hours, which was not done for the reasons explained by the Inspector," the inquiry said. Furthermore, it said that Ghirxi has said she was "worried" in her contact with the police, but not "scared."

"There was no indication that the events that did happen were going to unfold," the inquiry said.

"The inspector had no information that there was imminent threat or physical violence. At that time, he had no indication of an existence of a real and immediate risk," the inquiry continued.

It concluded that the police did not fail to take measures within the scope of their powers which, judged reasonably, might have been expected to avoid [that] risk.

The inquiry concluded by drawing a comparison between Bernice Cassar's case and that of Ghirxi.

"In Bernice Cassar's case, there were many red flags, unlike in this case. The patterns in Ghirxi's case are not similar to that of Cassar," the inquiry said.

The Board's conclusion made reference to what has been written on this subject: 

"While the police and Appogg should tackle cases of harassment of women with more urgency, the underestimation of danger by the victims themselves is also a problem as it tends to dampen the vigilance and urgency with which the authorities react."