Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1050749
10 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 NOVEMBER 2018 NEWS 17 BLACK Unravelling the 17 Black mystery KURT SANSONE IT started from a cryptic message on Daphne Caruana Galizia's blog in Febru- ary 2017 and reached a climax in April this year when Keith Schembri confirmed that 17 Black had been included in a business plan for his Panama company. But the unanswered question was always who owned the mysterious Dubai compa- ny going by a name reminiscent from the gambling world. The answer came last Friday in a Reuters report that named Tumas Group share- holder and CEO Yorgen Fenech as the owner of 17 Black. Here is a breakdown of the information made available so far and a presentation of facts that have emerged since the publica- tion of the Panama Papers in 2016. What did Reuters uncover? Reuters quoted unnamed sources say- ing that Malta's anti-money laundering watchdog, the FIAU, had identified Yor- gen Fenech from the Tumas Group as the owner of 17 Black. The FIAU is believed to have passed on its report to the police to commence an in- vestigation on money laundering. But Reuters also quoted a source in the United Arab Emirates, who said account records at Noor Bank in Dubai identified Fenech as the owner of 17 Black. Reuters said it reviewed UAE banking correspond- ence that described Fenech as the owner and signatory of a 17 Black account at Noor Bank. Who is Yorgen Fenech? He is a shareholder, director and CEO of the Tumas Group. The group formed part of the Electrogas consortium that won a multi-million government concession to build and operate a gas power station, which was a key electoral pledge in 2013. Fenech was the man from the Tumas Group who fronted the Electrogas con- sortium that included the Azeri company Socar and Siemens. The gas power project was the brainchild of then Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi, who contested the election with the La- bour Party for the first time in 2013. What is the significance of the latest revelation? 17 Black had been identified as a target client of the Panama companies set up by Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri. This means that Mizzi's and Schembri's companies had to receive money from a Dubai-based firm owned by one of the shareholders in the gas power station con- sortium. While Reuters has not traced any fund transfers between 17 Black and the companies owned by Mizzi and Schembri, the connection on its own raises serious question marks over the intention behind the whole arrangement. What did Yorgen Fenech say? In the reply quoted by Reuters, Fenech did not comment on the specific allega- tion that he owned 17 Black. He neither Fact 1 Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi opened companies in Panama Both men were initially outed by Daphne Caruana Galizia in February and March 2016, as having opened companies in Panama. Caruana Galizia was ostensibly given a heads up on information that was to be made public in April that year by the International Con- sortium of Investigative Journalists, where her son Matthew worked. The information known as Panama Papers came from a leaked email cache from Panamanian firm Mos- sack Fonseca (MF). MF's Malta rep- resentative was financial services firm Nexia BT, owned by accountant Brian Tonna. The Panama Papers showed that Nexia BT was authorised by Schem- bri and Mizzi to open companies in Panama on their behalf. The process to acquire companies in Panama was initiated by Nexia BT shortly after the 2013 election but Schembri and Mizzi only formally acquired the companies In July 2015. Schembri's Panama company was called Tillgate, while Mizzi's was called Hearnville. Schembri and Mizzi had confirmed the acquisition of these Panama companies, whose shares were held by trusts the pair had in New Zea- land. Fact 2 The search for a bank Email exchanges between Nexia BT and MF representatives in Panama showed that numerous attempts were made in different countries to open bank accounts for Tillgate and Hearnville. Until December 2015, which is the latest information available from the Panama Papers, the attempts had not yet borne fruit. The biggest stum- bling block appeared to be the fact that Schembri and Mizzi were politi- cally exposed persons. Both men have denied the com- panies ever held bank accounts and that they traded. Fact 3 Companies were set up to trade and receive money Documents included with emails exchanged between Nexia BT and MF indicate that both companies were set up to carry out interna- tional business in the fields of recy- cling, remote gaming, infrastructure projects, maritime and fisheries, and tourism. Nexia estimated that the two companies would be generating $2 million within a year. But crucial- ly, the documents also included the names of two Dubai-based compa- nies called 17 Black and Macbridge as "target clients" for Tillgate and Hearnville. The information was contained in an email sent by Nexia BT in December 2015. The informa- tion was made public last April by the Daphne Project. Fact 4 Keith Schembri knew about 17 Black The name 17 Black was made public for the first time sometime in Febru- ary 2017 when Daphne Caruana Gali- zia put up a cryptic blog depicting the words '17 Black' and photos of Joseph Muscat, Keith Schembri, John Dalli and Konrad Mizzi. The next time it was mentioned was by The Malta Independent in May 2017 when it published excerpts from a leaked Financial Intelligence Analy- sis Unit report that indicated the com- The unanswered question was always who owned the mysterious Dubai company going by a name reminiscent from the gambling world. The answer came last Friday in a Reuters-Times report that named Tumas Group shareholder and CEO Yorgen Fenech as the owner of 17 Black