The former second-in-command is still receiving a salary from prison, despite having been removed almost a year ago, senior prison sources told Times of Malta.

Randolph Spiteri, who was the right-hand man of former prison chief Alex Dalli during a tumultuous period that saw 14 prisoners die in three years, was removed from his role last May.

Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri has since been repeatedly saying he was transferred to another unit within the ministry.

But sources said that, even though Spiteri does not show up to work at prison anymore, for some reason he remains listed on the prison books as head of administration and operations and receives a salary from prison.

It is unclear what that salary is but replying to a parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Mark Anthony Sammut last February, Camilleri had revealed that Spiteri was employed on an indefinite contract on a scale 4 government salary.

Randolph Spiteri was second-in-command at the Corradino Correctional Facility during a controversial period.

According to the 2023 budget estimates, that means an annual salary of more than €38,000, excluding perks and allowances.

In another PQ in February, Sammut asked Camilleri to list all the officials transferred from prison to another government job over the past four years. The minister provided the list and Spiteri is not among them, even though the minister himself had been, for nine months, repeatedly telling reporters that Spiteri had been transferred.

It is also unclear whether Spiteri is reporting to work at his new job because the ministry would not say.

Spiteri's replacement has left the job

Spiteri’s replacement, who took over his duties last year and had been working as an acting chief operations officer in his stead, left the job last week without ever officially assuming the role.

Sources said Spiteri was moved to the office of the permanent secretary within the Critical Infrastructure Protection Directorate (CIPD), a unit that coordinates all critical infrastructure protection and emergency and disaster management issues on a national level.

Spiteri does not hold professional qualifications for this job. It is also unclear whether he receives another salary from it.

The home affairs ministry and the prison authorities have been publicly promising to issue a call for Spiteri’s replacement in prison for the past year but sources said the call was never issued because the role was never officially vacated.

Times of Malta asked the home affairs ministry to explain why Spiteri still gets paid from prison despite being removed a year ago, what his new job is and why a call for his replacement was never issued.

Near identical replies from ministry

In a very short reply, the ministry would only say that Spiteri does not work at Corradino Correctional Facility anymore and that a new call would be issued once the prison human resources “structure is formally approved”.

This reply is almost identical to the one the ministry sent last September, when Times of Malta asked why Spiteri was still listed on the books as a prison official and why he still made use of the prison car, which was complete with flashlights, a beacon and a siren.

Back then, Times of Malta had revealed that Spiteri still made use of his prison car and had a reserved parking spot in his neighbourhood, marked with a sign reading “Reserved for CSA [Correctional Services Agency] Vehicle”.

Questions sent to Spiteri remained unanswered by the time of writing.

Who is Randolph Spiteri?

Spiteri was a close confidant of  the former prisons director during a controversial period in prison history that was peppered with allegations of abuse of power. It was also a period that saw 14 inmates die in three years.

Former prisoners have also accused Spiteri of favouring certain inmates over others.

Last June, a court heard how he tried to broker a settlement between a Transport Malta official accused of sexual harassment and his victim’s husband.

The husband, whose wife claimed she was sexually harassed at the workplace by Transport Malta official Clint Axisa, testified that he had received a call from Spiteri urging him to reach some sort of amicable “settlement”.

Spiteri took the job as prison’s second-in-command when Dalli was appointed director in 2018. Dalli left his post in December 2021 after an inquiry into the prison’s unorthodox methods of discipline called for a major overhaul of the system.

Spiteri then went out on long leave in May last year and, despite insisting he was only on vacation leave and would return to work, he did not. A few days later, Camilleri said that Spiteri had been removed from prison.

The reason for his purported transfer was never explained  but senior prison sources had said he was part of the Dalli regime problems while a senior government source had said “it was time for change”.

Is Spiteri planning a comeback?

A former Armed Forces of Malta officer – Daren Micallef – took over Spiteri’s prison duties last year. He was officially engaged with a contract as an executive consultant in prison but essentially carried out Spiteri’s role – the second most powerful role in one of the country’s most dangerous and most highly secured facilities.

Micallef leaving his role last week, however, has raised internal concerns that Spiteri might be eyeing a comeback, given that he was never officially expelled.

With regard to my decision to leave CSA, I felt that it was now time to take a different direction in my professional career- Darren Micallef, Spiteri's replacement

But the home affairs ministry insisted with Times of Malta that there are no plans for Spiteri to return.

In a reply to questions, Micallef said he decided to leave prison because he wanted to take a different direction in his professional career.

“I would like to state that,  during my tenure as an executive consultant, I am proud to have contributed to the positive ongoing reforms at the Correctional Services Agency,” he said.

“With regard to my decision to leave CSA, I felt that it was now time to take a different direction in my professional career.”

It is unclear who will be taking over the role after Micallef. The ministry and prison authorities would only say that a call “will be issued once an HR structure is formally approved”.