Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/706995
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 24 JULY 2016 16 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Sammut used the company Capital Resources Ltd, registered in St Paul's Bay, to open vari- ous accounts in 2010 and pour in millions of funds denominated in British pound sterling, United States dollar, and euro. The cash also funded Muatassim Gaddafi's playboy lifestyle, with millions held in his various Amer- ican Express and Visa credit card accounts. Sammut formed the aptly named Capital Resources on 28 June, 2010, and two days later started effecting an enormous deposit of cash in the accounts. On 30 June he opened three ac- counts at Bank of Valletta in the name of Capital Resources, a com- pany owned by Gaddafi but whose name appeared as Muatasimbllah Muammar Abuminyar. The sums of GBP 3,006,932, USD 21,440,606, and €55,629,914 were deposited in these three ac- counts. The next day on 1 July another $12.4 million were depos- ited, and a month later $5 million. Up until the end of 2015, further deposits had taken place, taking up the dollar account to well over $38.7 million, and the euro ac- count to €56.3 million. In total, Gaddafi had at least €94 million in funds held at Bank of Valletta. The movements of cash were sporadic both before and after the 2011 revolution in February. Two weeks after the 17 February revo- lution, two payments were made of €73,832 and €60,000 under the description 'Settlement LISA' and 'Settlement ALAG'. After February 2011, the only cash movements were interest earnings and the payment of with- holding tax. Additionally, Muatassim Gaddafi had various Visa platinum ac- counts, holding €122,770, €84,587, a €22,403 Bank of Valletta gold Visa, and another BOV platinum holding €61,118.49. In total, the accounts stand at €290,000. Again, there is little indication here of cash movements except for payments made at the five-star Four Seasons hotel overlooking Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour, with €5,120 paid in September 2010; then €4,890 spent over one night at the legendary Paris- ian luxury nightclub L'Arc Paris, which faces the Arc de Triomphe; €4,500 spent at the Rival Deluxe restaurant on Champs Elysee, and a stay at the Hotel Le Bristol, where rooms go for over €900 a night: final spend, €61,672. Back in Malta in February 2011, his managers at Capital Resources would restore the balance with a €100,000 deposit. It would be the last deposit into that beloved credit card, one of many believed to have been in his pocket the day Muatassim Gaddafi was caught by Libyan re- bels. Muatassim, 36, died in the Libyan desert, bearded and in his last gasps on a hospital bed, with a gaping wound in his throat on 20 October, 2011 after being cap- tured at the fall of Sirte. The Libyan Attorney General says that Capital Resources Ltd has assets far in excess of what it could have legitimately earned. It has also accused Bank of Valletta of violating know-your-customer rules that should have prevented it from opening an account for Gaddafi in the first place. "The bank stood to profit from the rela- tionship because his deposits were a cheap source of funding and his massive credit-card transactions generated fees," the Wall Street Journal reported the Libyan AG as saying. Auditor Joe Sammut, whose tes- timony was given behind closed doors, said in court that he dis- cussed the transactions with Bank of Valletta and then decided not to report them to Maltese authori- ties. Sammut was until recently a point of reference for Libyan businessmen fleeing turmoil in their country, housing companies like tourism and real estate com- pany Mabco, run by businessman Jalal Baayou; Ferasa International Trading & Construction, owned by Zuhir Abdusalam Almun- tasar; Lamar International Group, headed by Naser al Jerrari, Jawal, headed by Abdulmoneim Abul- ghasseim, and West Tripoli and Tripoli Stone Company. Libya's claims are being op- posed by Safia Farkash Gaddafi, the 63-year-old widow now living in Oman with sons Hannibal and Mohammad, and daughter Aisha. Safia Farkash's lawyer, Charilos 'Harris' Oikonomopoulos, is op- posing the Attorney General's claims. In the proceedings before Mr Justice Lawrence Mintoff, Oikonomopoulos also claimed that Muatassim Gaddafi had an- other heir: his hitherto unknown wife Lisa van Goinga and her son. But Oikonomopoulos has so far presented no proof of marriage or paternity in court. Under Islamic law, van Goinga would be entitled to one-eighth of her alleged hus- band's wealth; her son would in- herit the lion's share. News Imported aquarium MARTINA BORG ALAN Deidun, associate profes- sor at the University of Malta's faculty of sciences, has appealed for regularising the aquarium trade in the interest of stopping alien species from establishing themselves and spreading where they can cause considerable damage. "There are a number of rea- sons why alien species might end up in the Mediterranean, but the uncontrolled aquarium trade is a very big culprit," he argues. Deidun explained that the ab- sence of regulations could es- sentially mean that imported and eventually unwanted fish end up in our seas, potentially wreaking havoc on existing eco- systems due to an absence of predators to keep them in check and stop them from depleting other fish stocks. Although figures are hard to come by, a parliamentary an- swer in 2015 had shown that some 796,555 exotic animals were imported between 2013 and 2015, with the largest pro- portion of them being tropical fish. Deidun cautioned that al- though some might think free- ing fish into the sea is com- mendable, certain species could spell trouble for endemic spe- cies, humans, and ultimately the fishing industry. "Alien species can be either non-invasive, making occasion- al appearances, but never really posing any risks, or they can be invasive, and that's where the real trouble lies," Deidun ex- plained. One such fish is the impressive but highly venomous lionfish. Specimens of the species, which originates in the Indian and Pacific oceans, have been seen throughout the Mediterranean, colonising parts of the Cypriot coast, and according to recent reports, it has also made it to Maltese waters. "There have only been rare sightings so far," Deidun said, adding that he believed that the species might have been re- leased from an aquarium rather than migrating from the east of the Mediterranean. "The fish is typically a very slow moving and slow breeding spe- cies, and since it was first seen in the Mediterranean in 1991, I am inclined to believe that the species may have been released in Maltese waters by aquarium enthusiasts rather than through natural migration," he said. Deidun explained that the fish, although beautiful to see, should be treated with caution given that stings from its barbs, although rarely fatal to humans, could cause extreme pain, vom- iting and respiratory paralysis. "The real danger of the species is more long-term in nature," Deidun added. "Sadly, the fish can compete for resources with endemic spe- cies like the dusty grouper (Cer- na), a very popular and com- monly eaten species, ultimately leading to a depletion of fish stocks, and therefore impacting the fishing industry." He added that the fish was particularly dangerous because there are currently no known predators in the Mediterranean, meaning that the species could continue to bloom largely un- checked. "A similar situation occurred in the Caribbean, where the li- onfish took over ecosystems and caused a depletion of other species," he said, adding that the spread had prompted cam- paigns for fishermen to catch the fish and for it to become a delicacy in the countries in question in an attempt to quell further spread. Deidun said that although li- onfish were perhaps one of the most recent additions, Maltese waters were host to a number of other species that have had less than favourable impacts. "The nomadic jellyfish in Isra- el and the Silver-cheeked toad- fish in Turkey, could be taken as examples of the potential harm that alien species could cause," he said. He explained that the jelly- fish had caused clogs in water- cooling systems used in power stations in the country as well as causing closures of beaches. The toadfish on the other hand, had caused extensive damage to fishing gear, and subsequent losses in the industry in Turkey. "It is essential for people to know the possible effects of al- ien species on local economies like fisheries, as well as tourism, not to mention, whether these species can be toxic when eaten or touched," he said, stressing the irresponsibility of setting tropical species free in local wa- ters. The professor added however, that the presence of alien spe- cies could not always be helped. Indeed, he pointed out that the majority of alien species in the Mediterranean, had ultimately made it through because of man-made activity or through openings linking the Mediter- ranean to other seas. "It is believed there are some 1,000 marine alien species in the Mediterranean, ranging from al- gae, to fish, crabs and jellyfish," Deidun said, pointing out that the species had doubled since the Suez Canal was widened in 2015. Interestingly however, Deidun Alan Deidun The Gaddafi family claims Dutch glamour model Lisa van Goinga and her son are Muatassim Gaddafi's heirs Gaddafi's lifestyle managed from Malta