Two flags outside Malta’s High Commission in London went mysteriously missing, while several bottles of wine and beer were stolen during a reception from the building’s sixth floor.
These curious facts came to light in a series of parliamentary questions filed by Opposition MP Claudette Buttigieg who enquired if there had been any thefts from government entities including Maltese embassies, as from 2017 onwards.
In the case of the foreign affairs ministry, Evarist Bartolo said there had been three cases.
The Hague
The first was from the Maltese embassy in The Hague in 2017 when two credit cards and cash were stolen for a total of €12,050. Two people were eventually convicted of these thefts by a Dutch court and sentenced to jail. Though they had appealed, one of them withdrew the challenge and the other did not turn up for the first court sitting.
Subsequently, they agreed to start refunding the money. They have so far made eight instalments of €75 in 2019 and two payments of €144.70 this year.
Tripoli
The second case was reported from the Maltese embassy as well as the official residence in Tripoli in 2017. The items which included chairs, electronic equipment, home appliances, satellite decoders, watercolour paintings and garden furniture amounting to €4,548.
However, the foreign minister said no police investigation was launched as the Maltese government refused them entry into the premises due to the current situation in Libya.
London
The third report was received from the Maltese High Commission in London. Though the overall amount of the things stolen was relatively modest at €346.89, this case was rather bizarre.
Bartolo said the two flags hung outside Malta House, situated at first-floor level, one costing €66 excluding VAT and another one worth €280.89, had mysteriously disappeared. Moreover, an unspecified amount of beer and wine bottles were stolen from the sixth floor during a reception. Though both thefts were reported to the police, the cases were not solved.
The reply did not specify the year when the thefts occurred and if the two cases were related.