A man returning to Malta from a holiday found his car missing after the police towed it from a white box and, after recovering it, found it to be damaged.

Speaking to Times of Malta, Jaime (who requested to have his full name not published),  explained the ordeal which saw him conduct his own investigation after the police refused to help find his car.

“I had to figure it out myself,” he said, claiming that officers did not know where the car was despite having it towed themselves.

In early June, Jaime said he decided to buy a second-hand Tata Safari Explorer to help him shuttle large items to and from the various properties he manages.

One week after buying the car, on July 14, he began a three-week trip across Europe, leaving his new possession parked legally in a white box in front of his house in Balluta, St Julian’s.

Before leaving, Jaime had also left his number on the front and back windows of the car and keys with a friend, just in case it needed to be moved while he was away.

However, when Jaime returned from his trip on August 3, he found the spot absent of his new Tata. He said he called LESA and was told that they knew nothing of the car and that they had not towed it.

“No one called me, so my first thought was that it was stolen.”

Have you seen my car?

The next morning, Jaime visited the St Julian’s police station to file a report. There, he described officers to be “useless” and “frustrating” as they were reluctant to help him.

After an hour of waiting for officers while they checked his story, Jaime asked when he would be able to file a missing car report.

“’Our shift finishes in 30 minutes,’” he claims they told him, leaving him with nothing but wasted time and a still missing car.

But, close to Jaime’s house, a pharmacy’s CCTV camera has the parking spot within its view, so he went there to ask to view the footage.

After the car was towed, Jaime found damage all over the left side of the vehicle. Photos: Jaime

The camera saw Jaime’s car being towed on the morning of July 30, the day of the Balluta feast.

Over the next few days, Jaime attempted to contact the police with this new evidence but still found them to be unhelpful as he said they had no record of his car.

On Monday, August 7, he went to the police garage in Floriana to check if his car was there.

According to their records, a Hyundai with a licence plate one letter off from his own car’s had been towed the exact same day and time as his.

‘Paid the €305 fine without even knowing it was my car’

“I paid the €305 fine without even knowing it was my car,” he said, assuming that officers had made a mistake but did not allow him to see it to confirm the theory.

Jaime then cabbed it to a car lot in Qormi where the car was being stored, found that the mislabelled car was indeed his Tata and took it home to catch up on the several days of work he had missed.

Upon arriving home with the car, Jaime said he noticed something odd about the drive.

 “The car was completely damaged on the left side,” he said, as his vehicle now had cracks around the front left light, scratches along the side and bent metal below the doors.

On the front window, Jaime found a small paper note asking people to move their car for the feast.

Since getting his car back, Jaime has contacted the police and the local council about the damages and appealing the fine as he looks into the cost of repairs.

I had to call the police, I had to call LESA, I had to pay for the taxis to go around… my main concern is that I had to do everything myself- Jamie

“I have already sent an e-mail to police headquarters explaining the entire situation but I have not heard back yet,” he said. He was also “laughed out” of the local council office when he went to ask about reimbursement, he claimed.

“They laughed at me and asked me what I was doing there as they told me that they don’t handle it,” he said.

“I had to figure it out myself. I had to call the police, I had to call LESA, I had to pay for the taxis to go around… my main concern is that I had to do everything myself.”

Responding to questions sent by Times of Malta, a police spokesperson said that an internal investigation has been launched to look into the “alleged internal mishaps”.

The spokesperson explained that a notice banning parking for the Balluta feast was published in The Malta Government Gazette on July 4 while ‘No Parking’ signs were placed on the affected streets two days prior to the feast.

“In spite of these notices, the car in question wasn’t removed by the owner on the 30th of July and therefore it was towed by a private towing company,” they said.