Former police commissioner Peter Paul Zammit sprang a surprise in court yesterday when he turned up during a criminal case involving a man against whom he had ordered charges to be dropped.

Josmar Agius, 44, from Marsaxlokk, appeared in court over an incident at the Żabbar police station in 2013.

It was revealed in Parliament earlier this week that, when serving as police commissioner, Mr Zammit had ordered that no charges should be issued against Mr Agius over the incident.

A report by an inquiry board said this was done with no explanation or justification, but Mr Zammit has since insisted the charges did not tally with what happened at the police station.

It resulted that Mr Agius was Mr Zammit’s client when he had served as legal procurator before becoming police commissioner.

When the case was called before Magistrate Saviour Demicoli yesterday, Mr Zammit asked the court to allow him to represent himself, parte civile, as he was an interested party.

Magistrate Demicoli up-held the request, and Mr Zammit went on to question prosecuting officer Robert Said Sarreo, mainly on who had ordered that the charges be issued.

Inspector Said Sarreo said he received instructions from his superiors, but Mr Zammit was not happy with that reply and demanded names. He even asked whether the instructions formed part of the police file, in which there were his own instructions not to proceed with the case.

Mr Zammit requested that the police file be exhibited in court during the next sitting to establish who ordered the charges to be issued.

Mr Agius was accused of threatening police officers at the Żabbar police station on June 7, 2013, between 9am and 9.30pm.

He was also charged with insulting four police officers, including a woman police constable, and preventing them from carrying out their duties. He pleaded not guilty.

The case was put off to July.

Police Inspector Said Sarreo prosecuted, while lawyers Joe Sammut and Jacqueline Farrugia were defence counsel.

According to an internal inquiry into the incident conducted by Judge Franco Depasquale, there was no justification for the suspension and eventual withdrawal of the planned charges against Mr Agius, and this appeared to be a unilateral decision by Mr Zammit.