Evidence suggesting possible collusion between doctors and prison officers in the issuance of allegedly false sick leave certificates has been referred by the Audit Office to the relevant authorities for investigation.
Following instructions from the Law Office, a criminal investigation is currently under way. As part of that process, an Audit Office official recently gave a statement to investigators from the Police Headquarters Criminal Investigation Department (CID), identifying two doctors, a general practitioner and an orthopaedic surgeon, who are being examined over the alleged issuance of sick leave certificates under false pretences.
As Politis revealed last Saturday, between January and July 2026, four officers, 12 chief prison officers and 38 prison officers received a combined 5,548 days of sick leave. The problem is believed to be even larger, since those figures cover only prison staff who had taken more than 40 days of sick leave.
Audit Office investigation
The criminal investigation stems from findings contained in a special Audit Office report issued in March 2026 and subsequently forwarded to the Attorney General.
Audit Office officials examined prison staff sick leave records covering the period 2022-2024, identifying numerous cases of employees who repeatedly exceeded the statutory threshold of 42 days of sick leave.
A total of 171 individuals exceeded 42 days of sick leave in at least one of the three years examined.
Of those:
- 44 exceeded the threshold in the last two years.
- 34 exceeded it in all three years.
Those figures correspond to approximately 10% and 8% respectively of the total prison staff workforce.
Suspicions involving doctors
In its report on the Department of Prisons, dated 10 March 2026, the Audit Office referred to "serious suspicions of collusion between doctors and prison officers".
According to Auditor General Andreas Papaconstantinou, the findings were referred to the competent authorities for further investigation.
The suspicions arose following sample checks on prison employees who had been absent on sick leave for lengthy periods ranging from 43 to 229 days per year.
Particular attention was paid to eight prison officers who collectively submitted dozens of medical certificates issued by the same two doctors, a general practitioner and an orthopaedic surgeon.
In one case, a prison officer who was absent for 205 days in 2023 and 202 days in 2024 submitted 51 medical certificates in one year and 60 in the next.
The Audit Office found that:
- 48 certificates in 2023 (94%) were issued by the two doctors.
- 57 certificates in 2024 (95%) were issued by the same two doctors.
Findings that raised concerns
For these eight officers, the Audit Office requested information from the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO) regarding visits recorded in the GeSY system.
The analysis produced several findings.
Visits missing from GeSY records
For four of the eight prison officers, the same general practitioner was listed as their personal doctor.
However, comparisons between sick leave certificates and GeSY records revealed significant discrepancies, with a substantial number of certificates lacking corresponding recorded visits.
Certificates issued by a doctor who was not their GP
For the remaining four prison officers, the doctor in question was not listed as their personal physician.
Despite this, a significant number of medical certificates were issued by the same doctor, again without corresponding GeSY visit records.
Lack of recorded orthopaedic visits
Five of the eight prison officers submitted certificates from both the general practitioner and an orthopaedic specialist.
For many of the certificates issued by the orthopaedic surgeon, investigators again found no corresponding visit recorded in the GeSY system.
In one example, a prison officer submitted 54 medical certificates, while only six visits were recorded in GeSY. Of those, only three visits matched the certificate dates and diagnoses.
Mismatched dates and diagnoses
Comparisons between the certificates and GeSY data revealed additional inconsistencies.
Investigators found several cases where the recorded doctor visit took place after the date on which the sick leave certificate had been issued.
Orthopaedic diagnoses from a GP
The Audit Office also found that several certificates issued by the general practitioner related to orthopaedic conditions, including:
- Osteoarthritis
- Sprains
- Knee injuries
- Cervical syndrome
In another case, the orthopaedic surgeon issued a sick leave certificate citing "migraine" as the diagnosis.
Delays in submitting certificates
A separate sample review covering absences between 1 January 2023 and 31 May 2025 found that a number of prison officers delayed submitting medical certificates, despite prison administration instructions requiring original certificates to be presented by the next working day.
According to the Audit Office, these delays hindered the timely referral of cases to the appropriate Medical Board, preventing assessments from being carried out while the employees' medical condition could still be properly evaluated.
As a result, the Medical Board was often unable to verify whether the prison officers were genuinely ill at the time the leave was granted.
