Fuel trader Gordon Debono, facing money-laundering charges following a series of anti-smuggling arrests last November, is protesting media reports describing him as an “associate” of Darren Debono.
Gordon Debono filed a judicial protest against The Malta Independent and Beacon Media Group, operator of newsbook online portal, over two articles published last Monday following the arraignment of Christopher Baldacchino, an auditor allegedly linked to the smuggling ring.
Both stories refer to Gordon Debono and former footballer Darren Debono as “business associates.”
Yet in reality, “the truth was closer to the opposite of this,” said the protesting party, since he and Darren Debono were never “partners” nor “business associates.”
Such a fact was now further supported by evidence emerging in the compilation proceedings being conducted separately against himself and Darren Debono, who had also been targeted in last year’s police anti-smuggling arrests, the protesting party claimed.
The court proceedings evidently showed that there was “no connection” between himself and former footballer Darren Debono, currently facing money laundering charges.
Reporters from both newsrooms attended court hearings and therefore could not deny being “directly” aware of such evidence nor that such facts were “in the public domain,” said Debono, arguing that such “distorted and incorrect reporting” was “intentional and/or malicious.”
In the best-case scenario, such reporting was “lacking precision and negligent,” amounting to an abuse of the right to freedom of expression “intended solely” to prejudice ongoing criminal proceedings in his regard.
Moreover, the newsbook article wrongly stated that both Darren Debono and Gordon Debono were still under preventive custody since their arrest in November 2020.
This was manifestly wrong since both he and his wife had been granted bail at the first hearing of the compilation proceedings in December, said Gordon Debono calling upon the newsrooms to stop such careless reporting, while holding them responsible for any damages or prejudice suffered.
Lawyer Roberto Montalto signed the judicial protest filed in the First Hall, Civil Court.