The father of a man who has been missing since New Year’s Eve has appealed for divers to find his son so the family can “give him a decent funeral”.

Alfred Pisani still holds some hope that his son, Marcel, is still alive but he knows the chances of finding him are slim.

“We wish to find Marcel’s car, so that we can close this horrible incident and give him a respectful and decent funeral,” Pisani said in an emotional appeal yesterday.

Fifty-year-old Marcel Pisani, who started to use a wheelchair after a fall three years ago, was reported missing on December 31 after he left his home in Triq ix-Xitwa, Mosta.

Two days before he was reported missing, a fire broke out at his house but the police said no-one was there at the time.

Nearly six months later, the family has reached out to Times of Malta to launch a renewed appeal to the public: to help them close this terrible chapter in their lives.

“We do not know what has happened to him, we still carry some hope that he is still alive but we know the chances are slim,” the grieving father said.

Alfred Pisani and his wife last saw their son on Boxing Day when he visited their home and last spoke to him on the phone on December 28.

“Every day since, we always find ourselves wondering where Marcel has gone. People try to console us, they tell us that hopefully we will one day find Marcel and his car,” he said.

In April, the family hired two private divers to search the deep waters off Mtaħleb cliffs.

They tell us that hopefully we will one day find Marcel

Despite going down a considerable depth, of over 65 metres, the divers found nothing.

The family and the police also searched several areas around the island, including vacant garages, derelict buildings and cliff edges, but still there was no trace of Marcel or his car.

Pisani said that since the car had not been traced in Malta or Gozo, the only place it could have ended up in is the sea.

“Our appeal now is for divers who might frequent the deep waters during the summer months to keep an eye out for the car.”

Hopefully, they would come across it and report it to the police, he said.

In February, the police released images of a light blue Renault Captur with a cream roof, similar to the one Pisani was driving.

“When we find the car, we hopefully find him and that way we can have some kind of closure,” Pisani said.

Since January, the Żebbuġ parish church has been holding a monthly Mass in memory of Marcel Pisani. The Mass is booked for a whole year.

Three years ago, Marcel fell and broke his spine. He had been extremely active before the accident but was left paralysed.

Bjorn Formosa, founder of ALS Malta and Djar Bjorn, a residential community home that caters for people with neurological diseases, said he had received an e-mail from Marcel four months before he disappeared asking to be admitted to the facility.

At the time, no beds were available, so they provided him with physiotherapy and counselling services.

A police spokesperson said investigations would carry on until Pisani is found.

“We appeal for anyone who has seen the car or noted anything suspicious in a closed garage to please come forward and report to the nearest police station,” the spokesperson said.

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