A court has ordered the prosecution to wrap up its evidence in an 11-year case against Enemalta oil scandal suspect Tancred Tabone and awarding him €7,000 in damages for breach of rights.
Mr Justice Toni Abela said it was "unacceptable" that the former Enemalta chair has waited since his arraignment in 2013, with no progress registered in two thirds of 64 sittings.
Tabone, 71, denies charges of money laundering, bribery and other related crimes some of which allegedly dated back to the early 2000s.
Last year the defendant filed court proceedings, arguing that the unduly prolonged criminal proceedings violated his fundamental right to a fair trial within a reasonable time.
His claims were fully upheld in a judgment handed down on Thursday, with the judge saying he could appreciate the saying “justice delayed, justice denied.”
A breakdown of the 64 sittings spread out over eleven years, showed that in 51 sittings “practically nothing or hardly anything” was done.
The case was complex but that did not necessarily justify the dragging out of proceedings, the judge said.
Tabone’s lawyer claimed that for the past ten years, the Attorney General had been trying to “justify the unjustifiable” by blaming the delay on the lengthy process of letters rogatory- official requests for evidence from foreign jurisdictions.
Mr Justice Abela acknowledged that such letters did present difficulties and obstacles to the smooth conduct of criminal proceedings, but there was nothing stopping the prosecution from producing other witnesses while awaiting those rogatory replies.
He said that while the President of Malta could extend proceedings, these extensions were never meant to be applied “interminably".
The President should not sign off extension requests “blindfoldedly” but rather, someone should draw the President’s attention to the matter and the person “best placed” to do so is the Attorney General, the judge said.
'Great prejudice' to the accused
All this spelt “great prejudice” for the accused, particularly in this case where Tabone’s assets have been frozen for years and his business “practically paralysed" the court ruled.
He had to resort to court for authorisation every time he had to transfer shares, sell property, cash insurance policy or even cover medical expenses.
“No one should be subjected unreasonably to such collateral effects of a [court] case when these are caused through delay in procedures,” said Judge Abela.
The delay also impacted Tabone’s right to produce evidence in his defence, the judge said.
In fact, he complained that since his arraignment some people he planned to summon have since died meaning the evidence has disappeared. In other cases memories have faded over the years.
When all was considered the court held that Tabone’s rights were breached and ordered the Attorney General and State Advocate to pay €7000 in non-pecuniary damages.
But since that monetary award did not alone rectify the breach, the court ordered the Magistrate presiding over the criminal case to schedule two sittings in close succession for the prosecution to wrap up their evidence.
And unless they did so within that term, the court was to declare the prosecution’s case closed.
Lawyer Giannella DeMarco assisted the applicant.