The alleged ‘brains’ behind the police overtime racket and another former senior police officer have been given a job patrolling the streets of Valletta to maintain order, despite still standing accused of the racket in court.
Former police sergeant major Dunstan Camilleri and former sergeant Norman Xuereb – both suspended from the force – were presented during a government press conference on Friday as part of a team of stewards who will be patrolling the capital day and night to ensure order and compliance with the law.
Both, however, are suspected to have had a major role in a massive police overtime racket that was revealed in 2020, and like other officers, they still face serious criminal charges in court.
In their new job, the uniformed stewards will support the work of police, but their role will be to serve as a deterrent to vandalism and other possible illegalities in Valletta.
It is part of the Valletta Management Plan – a joint project between the tourism and culture ministries.
But police sources have raised concerns over the new jobs, telling Times of Malta that while everyone has the right to work, even if they stand accused in court, the government was sending the wrong message, as it was allowing former officers charged with serious crimes to patrol streets to ensure order.
In February 2020, the police arrested over half of its traffic corps on suspicion of fraud, overtime excess and false declarations in a racket that had rocked the force.
Claiming overtime pay for work they never did
The scheme involved traffic officers claiming overtime pay for work they never performed. It is believed that officers within the traffic section, mainly those from the motorcycle section, submitted overtime sheets for hundreds of hours that they did not work, over at least three years.
Some 34 officers had been arrested and suspended from their duties on half-pay.
While some of them have been cleared of charges, others, including Camilleri and Xuereb, are still facing trial.
During a court hearing, Xuereb was even described as the brains behind the racket, and several police sources confirmed he is suspected to have played a major role in it.
Questions were sent to the tourism and culture ministries.
The tourism ministry said authorisations were sought and approved by the Public Service Commission.
The stewards will not be armed and will not have the power to issue fines, arrest people or take direct enforcement measures
Among other tasks, they will oversee and report to the relevant authorities instances of violation of public order and patrol public gardens.
They will also discourage instances of sudden stopping on double yellow lines which restrict traffic movement.
It is also understood the stewards will not be armed and will not have the power to issue fines, arrest people or take direct enforcement measures.
It is yet unclear what powers the new stewards will have and it is also unclear why the former officers were given the job, but Times of Malta understands it was part of a government scheme intended to find alternative employment to suspended police officers.
The Valletta Management plan is the first-ever of its kind for Valletta and was launched to safeguard the capital as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and to enhance all the qualities that make Malta’s capital city a location worthy of being listed as a global cultural heritage.