Former police sergeant Mario Camenzuli.

A police officer caught allowing migrants to bypass immigration control at the airport has been sentenced to two years in prison suspended for four years.

Former police sergeant Mario Camenzuli, who was reinstated in 2013, was accused of assisting in illegal immigration practices and dereliction of duty.

Mr Camenzuli, 67, of Cospicua, who appeared before Magistrate Ian Farrugia, pleaded guilty to all the charges brought against him.

He was arrested at the airport by plainclothes policemen in January on suspicion that he was involved in illegal activities, including allowing into Malta third country nationals without going through passport control.

Sources had told this newspaper Mr Camenzuli was seen on CCTV footage accompanying arriving migrants and letting them through without going through the normal control channels. It had been suspected that such ‘operations’ had occurred several times before his arrest.

In 2015, Mr Camenzuli, who has now resigned from the force, was awarded a medal for his “long and efficient service” to the police.

An immigration officer also posted at the airport was last week accused of abusing her position to allow irregular migrants to remain in Malta illegally.

According to the charges, the officer, whose name cannot be published by court order, used to stamp irregular immigrants’ passport to give the impression they entered the island regularly.

It is not known whether this case is connected to Mr Camenzuli’s.