The police have raided the house of Rita Schembri, the head of the Government’s internal audit agency, as part of an investigation that was launched following a damning report indicating abuse of power.

Ms Schembri is not under arrest but has been interrogated

Officers seized a computer and a copy of the OLAF report on the Dalligate affair during a raid on Thursday evening on Ms Schembri’s house in Wardija.

As the head of the Internal Audit and Investigations Department (IAID), Ms Schembri would have had access to the report, which was only published recently.

However, the document is government property and should not have been at her house, police sources said, especially considering that she is currently suspended.

Ms Schembri is not under arrest but has been interrogated.

Ms Schembri is preparing to face a disciplinary board that will decide on her future with the civil service. A review by the Auditor General, on allegations levelled at the 47-year-old chartered accountant, concluded that her position had been “seriously jeopardised”.

She had gone on long leave in October after allegations first surfaced. The report revealed that Ms Schembri had given false evidence to the board under oath and that she made use of sensitive information for personal use.

It also confirmed the allegations made against her by businessman Philip Rizzo, who in October produced e-mails indicating she was using her Valletta civil service office to broker a deal to buy out an existing Casino di Venezia partner.

The audit also noted that Ms Schembri had an extensive undeclared involvement in the bid of a UK gambling company – Far East Entertainment (FEE) Group Entertainment Plc – to buy the Vittoriosa casino, giving rise to an “ongoing conflict of interest”.