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2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 4 JULY 2021 NEWS Delivery fee of just €1 per day for orders up to 5 newspapers per address To subscribe 1. Email us your choice of newspapers, recipient's name, address, contact number to production @millermalta.com 2. Forward cheques payable to Miller Distributors Ltd on address: Miller House, Airport Way, Tarxien Road, Luqa LQA1814 Queries on other news- papers and magazines, production@ millermalta.com maltatoday Same-day delivery of your favourite Sunday newspaper Monday-Friday MaltaToday Midweek • €1 BusinessToday • €1.50 Sunday MaltaToday • €1.95 ILLUM • €1.25 Support your favourite newspaper with a subscription https://bit.ly/2X9csmr CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The report has been delivered to the Speaker of the House, who will convene a meeting of the parliamentary committee tomorrow Monday. Hyzler's re- port is said to include a recom- mendation that his report be for- warded to the Commissioner for Revenue for an investigation on alleged tax evasion. Abela is expected to come un- der pressure by Nationalist MPs to exclude Cutajar from his par- liamentary group, this newspa- per has learnt. MaltaToday is informed that Hyzler also filed an application to Magistrate Rachel Montebel- lo, the magistrate presiding the compilation of evidence against Yorgen Fenech, to obtain access to mobile phone chats between Fenech and Cutajar. The re- quest was refused. Hyzler then obtained a copy of the chats af- ter requesting them from Cuta- jar herself, who obtained them from the Executive Police under a right of disclosure request. The ethics breach investigation was triggered by a MaltaToday story that could have ramifica- tions over the MP and allegations of tax evasion, apart from her problematic proximity to Yor- gen Fenech, a magnate whose secret Dubai company 17 Black is connected to secret Panama companies belonging to Keith Schembri, the former OPM chief of staff, and Konrad Mizzi, the former energy minister. Cutajar and her aide, Charlie Farrugia 'it-Tikka', were alleged to have received some €100,000 in brokers' fees for the sale of a €3.1 million Mdina property to Yorgen Fenech. The property transaction was officially carried out with a fiduciary com- pany, but the property sale was never final- ised with a contract with Fenech himself. A promise-of-sale was made out in May 2019 with Pierre Lofaro, ap- pearing on behalf of the company Green Eyes Lim- ited. Green Eyes is owned by two fiduciary companies run by Lofaro, but its ultimate beneficial owner is the Mdina property owner, Joe Camilleri. Lofaro is the husband of Judge Abigail Lofaro. Yorgen Fenech had visited the property together with Rosianne Cutajar, who was already an MP, and her friend, Charlie Farrugia. Farrugia later became Cutajar's political aide after she was appoint- ed a junior minister in February 2020. Their viewings of the Triq is-Salvatur house are a crucial fact, because Cutajar and Farrugia are said to have claimed for themselves a finder's fee of €50,000 each. That allega- tion is stated in correspond- ence between Lofaro and a lawyer for Cutajar, in a contesta- tion over the €100,000 brokerage fee (senserija). 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 proper- ty accepted to have €100,000 of that deposit paid to both Cutajar and Farrugia by way of a broker's fee. The contract was due to be signed in September 2019, but was extended in four instances over the course of October and November. By the time Fenech was arrested on 20 November 2019, the property contract was never signed. But the property owner ended up chasing Cuta- jar and Farrugia for the €100,000 that had been paid early on in cash for their 'brokerage'. The matter was subsequently taken up by Lofaro, as represent- ative of Camilleri's property, and Cutajar's lawyer, Edward Gatt. 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. Rosianne Cutajar was twice-elected mayor of Qormi; in 2012, Charles Farrugia was elected as an Qormi local coun- cillor. Cutajar disclosed Yorgen Fenech chats to George Hyzler Rosianne Cutajar (right) and Charles Farrugia (left). The Labour MP disclosed a selection of mobile phone messages she obtained under right of disclosure from the executive police, exchanged with the Tumas magnate Yorgen Fenech (below) After Hamrun outrage, COVID rules relaxed CULTURAL, corporate and sports events are to be allowed to admit over 100 people according to new standards published by the health ministry, the same day arts and entertainment workers held an impromptu pro- test outside the House of Representatives. The standards, effective as of 5 July, introduce a "bubble" concept for large venues. If the venue is equipped with physically separate entrances, facil- ities and even staff, the event can accommodate up to 100 people per sepa- rate section. This number will increase to 150 on 19 July and 200 on 2 August. Each section must be physically separated from the other, with staff and spectators from sections not allowed to have any contact with each other. Every section shall not exceed one person per four square metres of the controlled area where the event is to be organised, provided that the maxi- mum capacity of attend- ees shall be capped so as not to exceed the maxi- mum number of per-sons allowed at law. Temperature checks are to be carried out at the entrance and alcohol hand rubs are to be made use of prior to entry. Events must be seated on- ly, with no intermissions or breaks. No dancing or smoking will be allowed and masks are to be worn at all times. Audiences are to be seat- ed in six-person groups at least 2m part. Members of the arts community yesterday held a protest outside Par- liament, complaining they are being discriminating against after Ħamrun FC fans were allowed to cel- ebrate in large groups af- ter winning the Premier League. 124 fans were lat- er fined by the police for breaching public health rules. Singers Ira Losco and Matthew James, come- dian Malcolm Galea and actor Joseph Zammit at- tended the protest. MEIA president Howard Keith Debono said artists had been left in a situation where they had to find new jobs because the sec- tor was not being taken seriously. Organisers held the gathering despite the po- lice rejecting a previous application for a "con- trolled, seated and socially distanced, peaceful pro- test." X Factor supremo and producer Howard Keith Debono (centre)