Man remanded over alleged €200,000 fraud from family-run company
Suspicious query from a client led the company to examine its accounts more closely
A 51-year-old unemployed man from St Julian’s has been remanded in custody after being charged with misappropriating more than €200,000 from the accounts of a family-run company where he previously worked.
Ivan Bajada pleaded not guilty before Magistrate Leonard Caruana to charges connected to the alleged long-running fraud.
Police said the matter only surfaced after a suspicious query from a client led the company to examine its accounts more closely.
The company, which supplies garage doors and shutters, is run by two elderly directors.
Inspector Matthew Grech told the court that the police investigation was launched in 2023 after the company’s directors filed a report.
The elderly directors had suspected for some time that Bajada may have been pocketing company funds, but had never confronted him directly because he allegedly reacted aggressively whenever the matter was brought up.
The issue finally came to a head when a client asked the company whether it was standard practice to transfer payments to a bank account outside Malta.
The directors said this was not the case, immediately raising concerns.
With assistance from the company’s former office administrator, investigators began going through the firm’s financial records.
Police told the court they eventually found evidence indicating that more than €200,000 had been diverted from the company’s accounts.
Inspector Grech said the investigation took several years because officers had to file numerous international requests in order to trace the money trail.
Working closely with the civil parties, investigators managed to corroborate the claims before securing an arrest warrant.
Bajada was arrested on Wednesday, questioned by police and arraigned in court on Thursday.
The court was also told that Bajada’s employment with the company had ended around three years ago and that his rent had allegedly been paid using cheques issued from the company’s accounts.
Defence lawyer Roberto Spiteri requested bail, arguing that the prosecution’s case is based mainly on documentary evidence collected over the course of a lengthy investigation.
He also told the court that Bajada is the sole carer for his elderly father.
The prosecution objected to bail, arguing that there was still a real risk of witness interference. They said the alleged victims had been deeply affected by the case.
The court rejected the bail request, noting that the alleged victims have yet to testify and that there remains a risk that evidence could be tampered with.
Lawyer Sarah Mallia appeared for the company.