Police are investigating claims by a young taxi driver that he was beaten by four off-duty policemen at separate locations in Buġibba on the night of March 30.

Charlton Zammit, 21, alleged he was beaten outside a nightclub in Buġibba and again at the Qawra police station.

When contacted, police said: "Mr Zammit said he was involved in a scuffle with off-duty police officers and suffered injuries. In view of the above, investigations regarding the alleged incident were initiated and are still in progress."

Mr Zammit is claiming that one of the four policemen, who were not in uniform, taunted his girlfriend at Club Elements before the incident took place.

"At one point my girlfriend answered back and he got worked up. Then I went to the toilet and they told her to follow me, using obscene language.

"She told me we should leave before there's trouble, so I went to get the car," he told The Sunday Times. Mr Zammit said the four men then beat him senseless. He also claimed one of the policemen struck him on the head with the butt of a revolver.

"They even went after my 17-year-old sister when she tried to stop them. They dragged her from her hair and hit her."

Qawra district police arrived on the scene and took Mr Zammit to the police station where, he said, he coughed up blood.

"I asked if I could go out for a cigarette and I went to the courtyard. Before I knew it, the four men came back, took me into another room and gave me another beating," he said.

It is understood that the four policemen have rebutted the allegations, saying they intervened when the taxi driver, who was drunk, tried to force his girlfriend into the car. One policeman said they even assisted Mr Zammit when he was vomiting.

Mr Zammit spent two days at Mater Dei Hospital, where he was questioned.

In their official response, police said that officers went to the scene after being informed that a man who was accompanied by two women was in a drunken state at Pioneer Road, Qawra.

"The police proceeded immediately on site where it was confirmed that this person was under the influence of alcohol. Due to the fact that he was trying to drive away from (the) site and was not even able to take care of himself or to stand on his own feet, he was escorted to Qawra Police Station," police said.

cperegin@timesofmalta.com