A prisoner is claiming that guards beat him up after he attempted suicide in his cell, breaking his nose in the process.
Walid Ben Muftah, 30, set his cell at Corradino Correctional Facility on fire in February 2021, in an attempt to kill himself.
Ben Muftah claimed that he was never given medical treatment or treated for smoke inhalation following his failed attempt. Instead, prison guards beat him and broke his nose.
He also claims that in a separate incident around the same time, guards sat him on a chair, tied him to it and put a balaclava over his head.
The allegations were brought to light on Tuesday by presenter and prisoners rights campaigner Peppi Azzopardi, who conveyed Ben Muftah's claims in a vlog posted to social media.
Azzopardi claimed that Ben Muftah's medical records "have disappeared from hospital" and demanded an investigation into the matter.
He said he had met with Ben Muftah in prison. The inmate claims to have not received adequate psychiatric care, despite several incidents of self-harm.
His arms, legs and chest are covered in cuts, Azzopardi said.
"What justice is this? How are powerless people convicted and punished, sometimes more than they deserve, but others, who are more powerful, are let off the hook?"
Ben Muftah's attempt at suicide also landed him with additional time in prison. He was charged in court with setting his cell on fire and admitted to the charges. Prosecutors pressed ahead with the case despite CCF saying it had no interest in pursuing it, and Ben Muftah was sentenced to 10 months in jail.
When Ben Muftah's incident occurred, Corradino prison was led by strongman Alex Dalli. Both Dalli and his right-hand man have since been transferred out of CCF.
Azzopardi said he hoped Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri did not try to deny the story, because the authorities have denied other prison incidents in the past, only for the truth to catch up with them later.
"Do you remember when I interviewed a young woman who claimed she was refused the right to marry her then-inmate fiancee on Xarabank?" he said.
"She had claimed that her fiancee was punished because she spoke up on television. And even though the authorities denied it, a few weeks ago the court ruled that the prison director had indeed treated the inmate in an inhumane and degrading way after her appearance on Xarabank. The court clearly said the former prison director acted out of vengeance."
Azzopardi was referring to the case of Yousef Essesi and his girlfriend Meliza Muscat, who were denied the right to wed by former CCF director Alex Dalli. After the couple went public with their issue, Essesi was transferred to Division 6, known as the ‘punishment’ division, with no explanation.
A court awarded the couple a combined €1,500 in compensation - an amount the couple later said was "ridiculous".
In his vlog, Azzopardi noted that a man who vandalised two 50-year-old statues was jailed for five years in June.
"This man, who destroyed two statues, was sent to prison, but nothing happens to people who destroyed real people," he said.
Former prison director Alex Dalli had run the prison since 2018, but suspended himself last November after a prisoner's suicide sparked an inquiry into procedures, amid concern at the high number of deaths among prisoners while he was director.
He was later appointed the government's special representative in Libya, dealing with matters of national security including migration.
Questions have been sent to prison authorities, the Home Affairs, Health and Justice Ministries.
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