Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1321294
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 DECEMBER 2020 NEWS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Their viewings of the Triq is-Salvatur house are a crucial fact, because Cutajar and Far- rugia are said to have claimed for themselves a finder's fee of €50,000 each. That allegation is stated in correspondence between Lofa- ro and a lawyer for Cutajar, in a contestation over the €100,000 brokerage fee (senserija). Cutajar has not denied being involved in the sale of the prop- erty, but a series of questions sent to her by MaltaToday were left unanswered. Instead, she furnished the newspaper with a letter from her lawyer, Edward Gatt, to Pierre Lofaro. In the letter, Gatt says that Camilleri should address his request "to third parties". When the promise-of-sale was signed between Yorgen Fenech and Lofaro in May 2019 at Por- tomaso, the Tumas magnate ten- dered €300,000 as a cash deposit to the vendor himself – rather than being held in escrow by a notary, as is customary. Farrugia was present, but not Cutajar. But the owner of the property accepted to have €100,000 of that deposit paid to both Cutajar and Farrugia by way of a broker's fee. As it turns out, the promise-of- sale agreement does not list any brokers' fees. The contract was due to be signed in September 2019, but was extended in four instances over the course of Oc- tober and November. By the time Fenech was arrested on 20 November 2019, the prop- erty contract was never signed. But the property owner ended up chasing Cutajar and Farrugia for the €100,000 that had been paid early on in cash for their 'broker- age'. The matter has now been taken up by Lofaro, as represent- ative of Camilleri's property, and Cutajar's lawyer. MaltaToday sought comment from Cutajar, which asked her to explain the request for the €50,000 broker's fee to be re- turned to Camilleri. This newspaper also asked Cutajar whether she had declared receiving this money, fiscally as well as in terms of her parlia- mentary declarations; whether the payment of the senserija had been requested by the buyer Yor- gen Fenech, with whom she visit- ed the property; and why anoth- er €50,000 was also paid to her aide, Charles Farrugia. Whilst not denying any as- sertions made in the questions, Cutajar's dry reply was her law- yer's letter. Rosianne Cutajar was twice-elected mayor of Qormi; in 2012, Charles Farrugia was elect- ed as an Qormi local councillor. Now employed in Cutajar's po- litical secretariat, Farrugia has a close relationship with Cutajar. Lofaro's position in company The lawyer Pierre Lofaro was director of the company Green Eyes until his resignation on 20 January 2020 – just over a month after his wife Judge Abigail Lofa- ro, was tasked to sit on the public inquiry board into the Caruana Galizia assassination. Lofaro assumed the role of company secretary, and instead installed the Mdina property owner's daughter Sarah Camill- eri, as director of Green Eyes. The two companies which ap- pear, nominally, as sharehold- ers of Green Eyes are Finaserv Consultancy and Pierre Lofaro's L&TD Fiduciaries. Lofaro is also a 50% sharehold- er with developer Chares Camill- eri, in Porto Notos, the company seeking to redevelop the derelict Jerma Palace Hotel in Marsas- kala into three high-rise towers. Abigail Lofaro retains share- holdings in property companies Number 62 Property Limited, Five Stars Properties Limited, and The Platinum Construction Company. Lawyers take up cudgels over broker's fee paid to Cutajar for Fenech's Mdina home THE relationship between Ro- sianne Cutajar and the Tumas magnate Yorgen Fenech has been a matter of intense specu- lation, after the son of Daphne Caruana Galizia accused her and two other Cabinet mem- bers of having had close rela- tionships with the man accused of ordering the hit on the jour- nalist. Paul Caruana Galizia had ac- cused three unnamed Cabi- net members of being in close contact with Fenech, specifying that a junior minister had an affair with him, well after rev- elations of his ownership of 17 Black, the company identified by as a client of the secret Pan- ama offshore companies owned by Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi. Parliamentary secretary for equality Rosianne Cutajar had already said she does not intend to respond to personal allega- tions involving her relationship with murder suspect Yorgen Fenech. "I do not intend to re- spond to these personal allega- tions. Ask whoever is alleging these things," she said. Prime Minister Robert Abela, on his part, said relationships between Cabinet members and Yorgen Fenech would only be unacceptable if they continued after he became a murder sus- pect. He has said he expected any ministers who were close to the alleged conspirator in Caruana Galizia's murder to play no part in Cabinet discussions con- cerning Fenech's fate, should it come to that. Fenech has previ- ously sought – and been denied – a presidential pardon by the cabinet of the previous govern- ment. His 'demarcation line' is whether the friendship or in- timate relationship was before or after Yorgen Fenech was im- plicated in the [murder] case. "To me that is the demarcation line," he has said. "It is not right that you and some are trying to give the im- pression that just because a per- son had ever spoken to or had a friendship with Yorgen Fenech it is wrong." Fenech, who stands accused of conspiracy in the 2017 as- sassination, was arrested in November 2019. His alleged involvement in the murder was not publicly known before that date, although he was identified as a suspect by investigators since 2018. One year prior to his arrest, in November 2018, Times of Malta and Reuters had exposed Fenech as the owner of offshore company 17 Black. The lawyer Pierre Lofaro was director of the company Green Eyes until his resignation on 20 January 2020 TIMELINE 14 May 2019 Pierre Lofaro, on behalf of Green Eyes Limited, enters into a promise-of-sale agreement with Yorgen Fenech. The company's UBO is Joe Camilleri, the owner of the Mdina property being sold to Fenech. A €300,000 deposit is paid on signing, but – according to documentary evidence – a €100,000 payment is set aside for Rosianne Cutajar and her aide Charles Farrugia 2 September 2019 The promise-of-sale is extended with another €100,000 deposit 18 Sepetember 2019 Promise-of-sale extended 5 October 2019 Promise-of-sale extended 30 October 2019 Promise-of-sale extended 30 October 2019 Seller Joe Camilleri is recognised as the UBO of Green Eyes, via shareholder Finaserv, according to the companies' registry 15 November 2019 New members to the Caruana Galizia public inquiry are appointed, including Judge Abigail Lofaro 20 November 2019 Yorgen Fenech is arrested 20 January 2020 Pierre Lofaro resigns as director and is appointed company secretary Fenech relationship Rosianne Cutajar (right) with close aide Charles Farrugia