Comment of the day
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Posted by Vera, on the subject of the Police Board report travesty:
Please take the time to actually read through the report. With twenty years’ experience of government-speak behind me I can easily detect the contortions this board went through to cobble together this hatchet-job on Inspector Taliana.
The selectiveness of their narrative is breath-taking.
They refer, in one brief sentence, to the fact that there were obvious discrepancies between the CCTV images of the thief and Mr Borg, and they note that this did not prevent the CID from proceeding against him. But they do not delve into this at all.
The CID’s sub-standard investigation should have been looked into.
Then they use half a sodding page to lambast Taliana for sending his ‘Message Alert’ to a wider pool of recipients than is the norm – and yes, using the sort of snide and patronising language that I have seen used time and time again by Labour when they want to set someone up as the patsy.
From what I see, Taliana did formally alert the magistrate immediately he had material evidence – the balaclava – that he had the right man.
I cannot comment on whether he should have done more before that stage, but what I read between the lines here is that, operationally, this whole balls-up points to problems in communication and processes between the different divisions within the Force.
A Police Board worth its salt would have taken the opportunity to delve into this aspect and improve it, and not to focus on the one officer who actually got it right.
In these circumstances you just cannot escape the notion that it is a set-up orchestrated at the very highest level of the Ministry for Home Affairs.
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Got set up by a similar bunch of CID idiots under Sant’s watch in 1996. Know how the poor bugger feels.
Hope he doesn’t have to serve time ‘awaiting trial’. No fun, at all.
“A Police Board worth its salt would have taken the opportunity to delve into this aspect and improve it, and not to focus on the one officer who actually got it right.”
My thoughts exactly. It is not Elton Taliana who is at fault here. If anything, it’s the system, it’s the procedures, it’s the training which have been found to be deficient. And who should take responsibility for this? Definitely those at the highest levels.
I’m also sure that the CID did not follow procedures. If anything, the whole story exposed a f*cked up system.
They are utterly disgusting. The whole lot.
Fishy as hell. The report states that Taliana should have stopped investigating as soon as they arrested Daryl (and he was told to stop).
This is the exact opposite of what the police say that they do (they don’t stop investigating until a final judgement is given): http://tvm.com.mt/news/2013/06/every-detail-could-prove-crucial-for-investigations-police-inspector-keith-arnaud/
A sad story for Inspector Taliana who is a victim of a politically motivated script.
A sad story for justice in Malta.
I await with interest the opinion of former ECHR judge Giovanni Bonello.
That is exactly what I was thinking.
If there is anything left of the old Giovanni Bonello, he would be bulldozing the report.
However, I wonder.
I have lost faith completely in everyone.
Dream on. He is probably afraid he might lose his iced bun.
The last paragraph says it all.
The presiding judge must explain the logic of how a police investigator who finds the real culprit of a crime is found guilty of disobedience of internal procedures.
Otherwise I conclude that the internal procedures provide for a quick lynching type of investigation, first suspect immeadiately hanged.
Taliana was ordered to stop the investigation because the CID had a suspect. This is the statement that MALLIA will have around his neck for years to come.
If Taliana had obeyed we have an innocent person in jail and a guilty one running free.
This is a very serious abuse of the system. When in opposition the Labour Party demonstrated in Valletta for less. I think there was one demonstration about “l-gholi tal-hajja”.
The hunters also organised their show, and lately professionals working in social care rallied to support their colleagues (and rightly so) who were physically attacked.
So what public reaction should this frame-up trigger? A public outcry is the bare minimum in my opnion and the police force should have the integrity and courage to support their colleague.
Ara jitqalleb Dr. Guido de Marco fil-qabar wara dak ix-xoghol kollu biex rega gab il-Korp tal Pulizija jiffunzjoni tajjeb.
SHAME ON YOU MUSCAT AND MALLIA
Add to Muscat and Mallia all the members of the Police Board.
I sincerely hope Taliana has a lawyer who will eventually guide him to the European Court.
I suppose people do still remember Pietu Pawl Busuttil.
I am sure people still remember Nardu Debono and how his corpse was dumped in a field after he was murdered at the Police Headquarters.
I suppose people are also now waiting for some iced bun for the convicted ex-commissioner of Police Pullicino.
He is being punished for following his gut feeling and continuing the investigation, even though he was told to stop. The guy should be given a medal instead.
Why are they picking on Taliana so badly? There must be some reason they want to punish him for stopping their prosecution of an innocent man. There is much more to this than meets the eye.
Well done, Vera for a no-frills assessment of the Police Board report.
@Mister: ‘Why are they picking on Taliana so badly? There must be some reason they want to punish him for stopping their prosecution of an innocent man. There is much more to this than meets the eye.’
Daphne has given a few clues in earlier posts concerning Taliana’s relationship to the Minister of Police himself and Saviour Balzan’s irrational onslaught as soon as Taliana arrested the real culprit.
I am shocked by Victor Gruppetta’s involvement in this lynching. I always considered him to be a gentleman, but it seems that the potential new business possibilities for his car hire and computer companies were too tempting, and that he values the friendship and support of Manuel Mallia more than his principles.
Shame on you, Victor. You have disappointed all your friends.
Aren’t official reports, like the government gazette, supposed to be in both official languges?
If this incident had happened elsewhere or in the movies, Inspector Taliana would be hailed as a hardworking hero who did his job very well, and thanks to whom justice could be done.
He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. – Martin Luther King
Are you still of the opinion that judge emeritus Franco Depasquale is a “respectable person” (http://daphnecaruanagalizia.com/2013/08/another-member-of-the-police-board-the-police-ministers-friend-client-and-associate-at-the-rent-a-car-association/)?
This is the judge who lamented in his parting address in court prior to retirement that now he will no longer have free newspapers. He is also the judge responsible for the Safi riots enquiry which practically absolved everyone of any responsability. But everyone kept quiet because the colour of the AFM commander at the time is very well known.
He is typical of the choices for the judiciary (and not only) of the Nationalist government: he was selected as a judge as he was a safe pair of hands and not for his industriousness or his juridical knowledge.
He can be expected not to upturn the apple-cart – under any government. And he can be expected to remain chair of the Police Board and supplement his pension (another stratagem of the Nationalist government for select retired members of the judiciary) for many aeons to come.
This is frightening stuff – not just for this poor man Taliana, but for all of us. Besides the absolute absurdity of it all – directing a witch-hunt on the one that got it right instead of posing questions to those who got it wrong – they are about to destroy this man by going though with this.
Someone obviously has another agenda here. Whatever it is, have they not given any thought to the repercussions of destroying this man who by all accounts is an able officer.
He probably has a family to take care of, who are dependant on him. Not only does he stand to lose his career and all the years he has invested in it, but they are planning to press criminal charges against him.
Not only does he risk losing his livelihood but he will have to spend a lot of time, money and energy to defend himself. All this for doing his job right. It is enough for any one to despair.