Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1491702
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 5 FEBRUARY 2023 NEWS The Commission on Gender-Based Violence and Domestic Violence, within the Ministry for Home Affairs, Security, Reforms and Equality is seeking to recruit the following personnel: MANAGER (PROJECTS) Jobsplus Permit No. 54/2023 For further details and application guidelines contact: Commission on Gender-Based Violence and Domestic Violence, Zentrum Business Centre, Triq l-Imdina, Qormi Phone 2276 8301 E-mail: contactus@stopviolence.gov.mt NICOLE MEILAQ A couple from Mosta handed a hefty €50,000 fine for gambling away charity donations meant for their son's cancer treatment, were accused of money launder- ing in court. Now on probation and also obliged to return the €35,000 in charity they received, the Debattista couple were charged in a case described in court as an act of "self-laundering" – meaning, the laundering of one's proceeds without hiding the criminal origin of the cash. A financial crime expert told MaltaToday that the mere possession and use of funds or assets obtained though an offence – in this case, a chari- ty donation that was not used for its intended purpose – can result in money laundering, so long as the person knows or suspects that those funds or assets were generated through the commission of a criminal offence. In this case, once the charity donations received by the cou- ple were diverted towards gam- bling, at that point a crime had taken place, because they mon- ey was effectively 'stolen' from its intended purpose. The money now had become a criminal gain, and by put- ting it into circulation to be gambled, any net gains from say a legal betting transaction, would have 'cleaned' the cash, making it 'good'. In the case of the Debat- tista couple, the fraudulent gains made through their first gambling wins and then sub- sequently lost, meant there had been no net gain from the money laundering. But the crime of laundering the cash – stealing the charity received to use in gambling – was upheld. In Malta, money laundering is any act or attempt to con- ceal or disguise the proceeds of a predicate offence. It also includes ownership, control, disposition or movement of such proceeds with the intent to evade the legal consequenc- es of the predicate offence, or to assist any person involved in the offence, to evade those le- gal consequences. Predicate offences include a wide range of criminal activ- ities: drug trafficking, fraud, corruption, extortion, racket- eering, tax evasion, and many others. "A formalistic approach could result in anyone committing a criminal offence also facing money laundering charges – the criminal is usually the one who comes into immediate possession of any funds or as- sets generated from an illegal activity, and he is likely to be the main person to make use of them," the expert said. However, in other cases, be- yond the mere possession of il- licit gains or cash, money laun- dering in other cases includes putting those gains into circu- lation – for example, exchang- ing the cash from the proceeds of drug trafficking, for a prop- erty or a luxury vehicle – to 'clean' the money and conceal its unlawful origin. When money gifted for charity was diverted towards gambling, it became a criminal proceed, and the couple that gambled away the cash was accused of 'self laundering' Parents who gambled charity donations: it money laundering? MATTHEW VELLA THE suspended chief exec- utive of the Manoel Theatre, Massimo Zammit, was earlier this week questioned by police in connection with sexual har- assment allegations by a for- mer employee. MaltaToday understands that Zammit has not been charged with any crime, and that he remains suspended on half pay from his role as CEO over an array of allegations of misconduct ranging from financial mismanagement to workplace harassment and un- professional behaviour. A female employee at the theatre alleged that Zammit had made unsolicited advanc- es to-wards her and at least one more employee had com- plained of Zammit exhibit- ing unprofessional conduct in the workplace which made co-workers feel uncomforta- ble. The decision to suspend Zammit in November was tak- en by the Manoel Theatre's management board based on a report by an external board specifically tasked with inves- tigating the allegations about him. Zammit was also facing alle- gations of misusing the thea- tre's hospitality funds as well as other claims of financial mismanagement. A disciplinary board was set up to consider Zammit's case, who in 2022 became the third major suspension within the cultural sector in a matter of weeks. First it was an official at the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra who was suspended after he was charged with and found guilty of sexual harassment. Then MPO CEO Sigmund Mifsud was suspended after prosecutors pressed charg- es against him for attempted tampering of evidence in rela- tion to that sexual harassment scandal. Mifsud allegedly instructed employees to keep quiet about the scandal and tried to talk the victim into changing her version of events before the matter reached the police. He denies the claims. A court heard that the victim had reported the harassment internally but had been ig- nored. She eventually quit her job. Suspended CEO of Manoel Theatre questioned by police over sexual harassment allegations Massimo Zammit was suspended on half-pay from his job as CEO of the Manoel Theatre back in November 2022