Detention officers are trained to disarm violent migrants but “training and procedures definitely do not include kicking”, according to the head of the detention service.

Lt Col Brian Gatt yesterday spoke for the first time since a fugitive Malian migrant died while in custody after escaping from the detention centre in Safi two weeks ago.

Two soldiers have been charged with murder and a third is accused of tampering with evidence.

Last week a witness for the prosecution testified that one of the soldiers kicked Mamadou Kamara in the groin after the Malian resisted arrest. The men deny the charges.

While condemning all forms of violence, Lt Col Gatt said the officers worked in “a difficult environment”. He said they never carried arms but were trained in hand combat to disarm a violent individual.

However, he said the men’s task was made more difficult by staff shortages since some 100 detention officers handle more than 1,000 migrants. “This is the reality I have been facing for the past 10 years.”

Lt Col Gatt admitted it was normal in similar environments to have an “us and them mentality”. But detention officers were constantly trying to go beyond their call of duty to bridge the gap and create synergy with the migrants, he added.