A man has been fined €3000 for having ordered a panel beater to alter the chassis number of a car. The car has been confiscated.

The judgment was delivered by Magistrate Charmaine Galea in a case instituted against Josef Grech.

The case took place in October 2015 when a black VW Passat imported from the UK had its chassis number replaced by the chassis number of a similar car.

The owner of the black car, Jason Sammut told the police that he had bought it from another man in the presence of the accused.

The panel beater, who faced separate court proceedings, admitted having cut out and replaced the chassis number, saying he had been paid by Grech for the job.

Sammut said that after having bought the car, Grech had told him about the fact that the chassis number did not match. He therefore demanded and got his money back. 

The court, after considering the evidence, found Grech guilty of having been an accomplice in the illegal change of the chassis number, of having transferred the imported vehicle without Customs approval, and with having evaded the relevant taxes.

The court said it was imposing a comprehensive fine of €3,000 which included a fine which was twice the amount of evaded tax. Grech was also ordered to pay court costs of €434.36.

The car with the false chassis number was confiscated.