A former top police officer was discussing property deals with Yorgen Fenech while leading the department that was meant to be investigating him, a court was told on Wednesday.
Ex-police superintendent Ray Aquilina was chatting with Fenech on the encrypted messaging application Signal in connection with the sale of a Birżebbuġa property, at a time when he was heading the police's anti-money laundering unit, the prosecuting inspector told court.
Encrypted messages between Aquilina and Fenech, recovered from Fenech's phone, indicated a relationship between the two at a time when the police were meant to be investigating Fenech's Dubai company 17 Black.
The messages also revealed discussions about the property deal and attempts to conceal their communications.
Inspector Sean Friggieri told a court that their investigation uncovered that Fenech had co-financed the purchase of the Birżebbuġa property, instructing his associates to remove any reference to him from the transaction.
Aquilina stands accused of money laundering, corruption and leaking confidential information about police investigations and perjury. He is pleading not guilty.
Fenech has also been charged with money laundering and corruption in the case. The notary involved in the property transaction, Mario Bugeja, also faces money laundering charges. All three are pleading not guilty.
The Birżebbuġa property deal
Times of Malta had exclusively revealed that Aquilina was poised to face criminal charges back in 2021.
Investigators suspected that Fenech was facilitating Aquilina's purchase of a Birżebbuġa apartment, at a time when the superintendent was meant to be leading a probe into the businessman's company 17 Black.
That offshore company is suspected to have been intended to funnel payments to former government officials Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri.
Instead of Aquilina appearing as the property buyer, the property transaction was to be fronted by his parents, who would then donate it to their son.
Aquilina ran 11 searches for Fenech on police system
Testifying on Wednesday, Inspector Friggieri said their investigation began in December 2019, when they received a report alleging that sensitive information related to the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder investigation had been leaked by public officials to third parties.
A magisterial inquiry later found that Aquilina had made 11 searches for Fenech's details on the police database, raising concerns about a potential conflict of interest.
Times of Malta reported in May 2021 that officers from the police’s anti-money laundering unit believed that the Birżebbuġa apartment worth in excess of €180,000 was set to be sold to Aquilina’s parents for around a third of its market value by Fenech in 2018.
The case continues.
Police Inspector Sean Friggieri prosecuted with lawyers Andrea Zammit and Gary Cauchi from the Attorney General’s office.
Lawyers Charles Mercieca and Gianluca Caruana Curran appeared for Fenech, lawyer Lennox Vella for Aquilina and lawyer Franco Debono for Bugeja.