Businessman Joseph Borg was cleared by the Court of Appeal of blackmailing the then head of the Prime Minister Office’s internal audit bureau six years ago.

Rita Schembri

Mr Borg, who had leased a restaurant to Rita Schembri and her husband, had sent her an e-mail giving her 24 hours to settle her dues with a Nigerian family she had abusively sub-leased his restaurant to.

He warned Ms Schembri he would report her to OLAF, the EU’s anti-fraud agency, if she failed to settle the matter.

Ms Schembri had reported the matter to the police who arrested Mr Borg and charged him with blackmail and defamation. No action was however taken on the allegations made by Mr Borg, which had also been raised in a civil court case in which Ms Schembri was found guilty of violating property laws. He was cleared by the Magistrates’ Court of blackmail but was found guilty of defamation and given a suspended sentence.

Both the Attorney General and Mr Borg appealed and the Court of Appeal decided that Mr Borg should have been cleared of all charges brought against him. The court concluded that Mr Borg had no intention of blackmailing Ms Schembri and, in addition, he could not be found guilty of defamation.

Ms Schembri hit the headlines in 2012 after facing allegations of abusing of her position at the Internal Audit and Investigations Department.

Auditor ruled her position had been seriously compromised

Mr Borg had accused Ms Schembri of abusing her position, using her office to conduct private business and making personal use of information obtained through her work.

Then Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had tasked the Auditor General to conduct an inquiry and Ms Schembri went out on long leave.

She resigned when the Auditor General concluded that her position had been “seriously compromised” and that she had lied under oath even during the investigation he conducted.