Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/817563
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 30 APRIL 2017 3 MIRIAM DALLI A former employee of Pilatus Bank, the source of allegations that the wife of Prime Minister Joseph Mus- cat is the beneficial owner of Egrant Inc, is facing charges before the Court of Magistrates for fraud, mis- appropriation of funds, aggravated theft and unlawful practice, the La- bour Party said yesterday. In a press conference called by the deputy leader for party affairs, Chris Cardona, and Tourism Minister Ed- ward Zammit Lewis, the PL accused opposition leader Simon Busuttil of being "dangerous, irresponsible and desperate, who will resort to any- thing to get elected to power". Cardona denied that the PL was using the woman's court cases to discredit the allegations and said: "The blogger has relied to create a fictional story," referring to Daphne Caruana Galizia, "based on claims that were made to her by a person who at the moment is facing in court a number of charges by Pilatus bank." "We have full confidence in the in- stitutions and will not comment on the inquiry." It was Daphne Caruana Galizia who on Friday evening revealed that the former employee had been the source of her reports. She reported in her blog that the woman had asked to testify before the magiste- rial inquiry. The former Pilatus employee has denied charges in court by police inspectors Jonathan Ferris and Lara Butters, of theft and fraud to the detriment of Pilatus Bank, and travel agency Enrico Travel. It was reported that the woman faces separate charges of having falsely accused Superintendent Denis Theuma and inspectors Jona- than Ferris and Lara Butters of hav- ing committed an offence she knew they did not commit. The charges to this second case were also filed in August last year. Zammit Lewis and Cardona ac- cused Busuttil of going to great lengths to get elected to power. "He is irresponsible and desperate, focusing on destabilizing the coun- try's economy and creating uncer- tainty by basing his campaign on a person known to have lied multiple times," the ministers said. "It reflects on Busuttil's own char- acter, who has now lost all credibil- ity." Zammit Lewis said it was ironic that Beppe Fenech Adami – the PN's deputy leader – was holding press conferences on the matter when the CapitalOne inquiry failed to fully exonerate Fenech Adami from any involvement. The whole saga has led to Godfrey Farrugia to resign as government whip, though he remains a mem- ber of the PL parliamentary group. Zammit Lewis said they respected Farrugia's decision, describing him as "a serious person". MATTHEW AGIUS MIRIAM DALLI THE Labour Party has sprung to the defence of the Attorney General amid accusations by the Nationalist Party that calls were made on Saturday morning to seek out information on a former bank employee, described as the source of allegations surround- ing the beneficial ownership of Egrant Inc. A third press conference was called by PN exponents Beppe Fenech Adami and Jason Azzo- pardi yesterday, in which they claimed to have information that the Office of the Attorney Gen- eral and the Police Board carried out a number of phone calls to seek information "on the charac- ter of the whistleblower". It has been revealed that the employee used to work at Pilatus Bank, but was sacked last year. The woman faces at least two court cases, one over defrauding Pilatus Bank and another of hav- ing made false accusations against Superintendent Denis Theuma and inspectors Jonathan Ferris and Lara Butters. Ferris and But- ters are investigating the fraud al- legedly committed by the woman. Daphne Caruana Galizia, who on Friday confirmed that her source used to work at Pilatus Bank, insists that the woman did not commit fraud and that the woman had not been paid for work carried out. According to her post, the woman used to work as personal assistant to the bank's CEO, whilst the bank insists that she was an intern. Addressing a second press con- ference in a matter of hours, Tourism Minister Edward Zam- mit Lewis and PL deputy leader Chris Cardona reiterated that the PN was going down a dangerous path in which it was attacking one institution after the other to keep its story alive. "Unfortunately, from this morn- ing to now, the systematic cam- paign, organised and coming from Castille, has become harsher in its efforts to discredit the whistle- blower," Fenech Adami said in the PN's third press conference. Jason Azzopardi said he could confirm that calls were made on Saturday, a day after the woman gave her testimony in court to the magistrate holding an inquiry into the Egrant saga. According to Labour, the accu- sations levelled against the Attor- ney General only proved that "Si- mon Busuttil has zero credibility and will do anything for power". "He is attacking any imaginable corner to keep this fictional story alive but cheaters don't prosper," Cardona said. Reiterating that the PL would not enter into the merits of the woman's pending charges, Cardo- na said Busuttil was choosing to rely on allegations whilst attack- ing the institutions. Zammit Lewis said that the PN had systematically attacked the country's institutions, one after the other, starting with the Broad- casting Authority, the Electoral Commission, the Police Force, the army and now the Attorney General. "Everyone knows that AG Peter Grech is a respectable man, ap- pointed by a Nationalist admin- istration. The pending charges against the woman are already public. For those who understand how the AG's Office works, they know that the AG is always in contact with the Police. Is this how the PN wants to attack him? "We fully trust the Attorney General and the Magistrate who is leading the inquiry." News 'Desperate Simon Busuttil will do anything for power' – Labour Labour to AG's defence after PN makes new accusations Chris Cardona (left) and Edward Zammit Lewis: Simon Busuttil will resort to anything to get elected