A 34-year-old woman was today charged with filing a false police report against a prison correctional officer.

Marica Muscat, from Cospicua, was charged with filing a false report against prison correctional officer Antonia Formosa on February, 25, insulting her, breaching the conditions of a previous release and relapsing.

The court heard how on February 18, Ms Formosa was ordered to conduct a strip search on Ms Muscat, then a prison inmate, who had arrived at Corradino from Mount Carmel Hospital. In the course of the search it resulted that the prisoner had a packet allegedly containing drugs. Ms Formosa had informed the prison authorities of this find.

However, in order to avenge herself on Ms Formosa, Ms Muscat told the prison authorities that it was Ms Formosa who had brought drugs to prison and then passed them on to other inmates.

Ms Formosa had filed a judicial protest on April, 8 claiming that although the prisoner had subsequently retracted her allegation and criminal proceedings were to be instituted against her, the Director of Prisons had, on February 25, ordered that Ms Formosa be strip searched to establish whether or not she was bringing drugs to prison. As the strip search, conducted by two female prison officers, proved negative, Ms Formosa was taken to Mater Dei Hospital for X-rays to establish whether she had ingested any drugs. The results proved negative too.

Lawyer Nicole Vella appeared for Ms Muscat while Lawyer Roberto Montalto appeared as parte civile.