A man from Chad who was found dead in St George's Bay was possibly pushed into the sea as a joke by a group of friends.

Eyewitnesses saw 36-year-old Hasan Matar Khamis with a group of friends on the rocks beneath Corinthia Marina Hotel at about 7.30 a. m., police sources said. About 10 minutes later, Mr Kamis was apparently pushed into the water as a joke and the group of four who were with him walked away, the sources said.

The scene was witnessed by tourists staying at the hotel, who immediately informed the hotel staff , asking them to call the police.

Police officers arrived within minutes and found the man’s lifeless body floating face down in the water. Civil Protection Department personnel were called to help carry Mr Kamis’s body ashore.

Mr Kamis, who had been in Malta for the past six years, was registered as living at the Marsa open centre and has no family. He was wearing a blazer, a shirt and a pair of jeans.

As investigations are still in the early stages, the police are not ruling anything at this point, not even foul play, sources said.

The sequence of events is still not yet clear but eyewitnesses noted that t he body language of the other people was not aggressive or threatening towards Mr Kamis, the sources explained.

The police are looking into the possibility that Mr Kamis was thrown in the water as a joke. However, it is not yet clear what led to him being left alone at sea.

No wounds were found on his body, except for a few scratches. Although it is suspected that Mr Kamis drowned, an autopsy is expected to be carried out today to establish the precise cause of death.

Depending on the outcome of the investigations, the victim’s friends could possibly face criminal charges in court.

Magistrate Doreen Clarke is holding an inquiry.