Letter in The Times leads to perjury case against lawyer

A lawyer was taken to court for perjury after the police were asked by the Attorney General to investigate the apparent contradiction in a claim made by the lawyer before the Criminal Court and the contents of a letter to The Times written by the director of the Civil Registration Department, the Magistrates' Court heard yesterday.

Police Inspector Joseph Cordina told the court he had been asked to investigate after Dr Patrick Spiteri, 38, of Wardija had appeared before Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano and claimed that a passport office employee had told him he could go abroad on an unrestricted passport.

The claim was made at a hearing called after the Attorney General had filed an application requesting the court to revoke Dr Spiteri's bail pending a criminal case for forgery and fraud.

A report of the proceedings had appeared in the newspapers, following which, the director of the Civil Registration Department, Carmel Mifsud, had written to The Times.

Mifsud stated, with reference to the claim in the report, that "cases concerning court orders/restrictions are invariably referred to and dealt with by senior passport officials and that the conditions contained in a court decree are invariably noted in the respective passport".

Inspector Cordina said that the Attorney General had asked him to investigate after the letter was published on November 9.

He eventually filed a perjury charge against Dr Spiteri and Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera started hearing the case yesterday.

Victor McKay, the court marshal assigned to Magistrate Joseph Cassar, explained how the court had granted Dr Spiteri leave to go abroad.

McKay said he had accompanied the lawyer to deposit the Lm3,000 bond in court. This was the day when the court registry was being inaugurated, he said.

They then went to the passport office to have his passport restricted in line with the conditions laid down in the ruling.

McKay said, however, that when they arrived at the passport office, they found the white gate closed. This was after 2.30 p.m.

He had called out and someone came and informed them that the office was closed but that it opened on Saturday mornings.

McKay said he told Dr Spiteri he would accompany him the next day if he had not managed to sort out the matter in the meantime, but he never saw him again.

McKay said he then went home and took the ruling with him, returning it to the file on Monday morning.

Lawrence Spiteri Bailey, at the time deputy registrar assigned to Magistrate Cassar, explained how he had asked the court marshal to accompany Dr Spiteri and what the marshal had reported back to him.

Aldo Testone and Paul Miruzzi, from the Criminal Court registry, said they had been called to testify by the Attorney General in the proceedings for the revocation of Dr Spiteri's bail.

The proceedings had been instituted at the Attorney General's request.

Testone said Dr Spiteri had claimed he had called the Criminal Court registry and a male voice had answered him and he had taken the witness stand to say whether he had taken the phone call. Both Testone and Miruzzi said they had not taken the call.

Testone also exhibited a copy of the evidence in the proceedings before Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano which included his and Miruzzi's evidence and that of other staff from the registry.

Ignatius Ciantar, from the Passport Office, said that his office provided a 24-hour service but a client wanting the emergency service would have to contact the director and the director would decide whether to direct his staff to conduct that service.

Passport Office staff only dealt with clients after hours if they were so instructed by the director, he said.

Ciantar said he did not remember whether he had seen anyone after hours during November but did not exclude that he had.

He said the office kept a list of clients who had been dealt with after hours and he could exhibit the list at a future sitting.

He also promised to exhibit a staff attendance sheet.

The case continues.

Police Inspector Cordina is prosecuting.

Dr Giannella Caruana Curran and Dr Emmanuel Mallia are appearing for the defendant.