Police monitoring the behaviour of a man suspected of drug trafficking uncovered a €3,815 spending spree at a Tigne’ clothes store over a six-month span.

However, the same monitoring did not yield evidence to support drug charges against Mohamed Ali Ahmed Elmushraty, known as ‘Lilu King', a police officer testified on Monday. 

Superintendent Keith Arnaud took the witness stand at the compilation of evidence against Elmushraty, a Paceville entrepreneur and social media influencer, who was arraigned in May and remanded in custody alongside two other suspects allegedly involved in organised crime, mainly linked to drug trafficking and money laundering. 

Early this year, the police set up a task force to monitor the suspect on a daily basis, logging in all their findings, while a parallel investigation about the man was launched by the financial crimes unit. 

But while officers noted Elmushraty’s luxurious lifestyle in Malta, FCID reported that the suspect had nothing to his name on the island, did not work and was practically “a ghost". 

For three whole months, police kept a close watch on the man including when he was in the company of people known by the police as pertaining to drug trafficking circles. 

Arnaud said he was present when officers searched the Portomaso apartment where Elmushraty was living. 

That was where the police seized a considerable amount of shoes, slippers, trainers, jewellery and branded items of clothing. 

None of the luxurious vehicles he drove, including a Range Rover with a “Lilu King” registration plate and a Mercedes vehicle with a “One King” registration plate, were registered on his name. 

When questioned about his work, Elmushraty had told police that he previously used to operate a shop on St Rita’s Steps, Paceville, and was in the process of opening another shop at the Vittoriosa waterfront. 

€3,815 for clothes in cash

Lilu King was a regular at a Tigne’ clothes shop where employees of the store described him as a “particular customer”, who opted for cash instead of payment by bank card. 

Between November and May, he went shopping for clothes eight times, spending €3,815 in total.

Throughout the investigation, Maltese police also set up contact with Libyan authorities who wanted Elmushraty over crimes allegedly committed in Libya. 

Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Franco Debono, Arnaud confirmed that investigations had not yielded evidence justifying drug trafficking charges against the accused. 

However, knowing how organised crime worked, there were individuals who “never touch drugs” and yet were involved in drugs, added Arnaud. 

“However, despite logging in information on a daily basis for three months, there was nothing to charge him with drugs, right," asked Debono. 

“No. Agreed. If there were, we would have charged him.”

The witness also confirmed that no drugs had been found anywhere in the accused’s possession. 

He also did not recall any drug convictions or pending drug cases in respect of Elmushraty. 

Earlier in Monday’s sitting, Luke Chetcuti, as CEO of Hugo’s hospitality group and landlord of a number of Paceville establishments, testified about a 10-year lease agreement signed with a third party whose name was previously banned by the court. 

The agreement was signed in August 2019 in respect of the establishment that was to house a Middle Eastern restaurant, later operated as a lounge bar and shisha bar. 

Rent was paid by transactions from the third party’s account and was also occasionally paid in cash, some three or four times by “il-Lillu” whom the witness identified and referred to as the third party’s “employee”. 

He had known the accused “out and about in Paceville”. 

However, he had no knowledge of the relationship between the accused and the third party. 

Nor had he anything to do with the way the establishment was operated, explained Chetcuti. 

The last rental instalment was paid in June last year. 

After facing difficulties in the payment of rent, the lessor received a letter from the lessee requesting the termination of the lease. 

The matter subsequently ended up in court. 

The 'hawala' banking system

During Monday's hearing, defence lawyer Debono minuted that during a previous sitting the court had passed a comment about the ‘hawala’ system in the sense that this was an illegal banking system.

By doing so, the Court had pronounced itself on the merits of the case and that could be a serious ground for recusal of the sitting magistrate, added Debono, pointing out that ‘hawala’ was acknowledged as a banking system in several countries. 

Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech explained that the system was considered illegal in Europe and had only commented in that sense to avoid possible prejudice against the accused through the defence’s line of questioning in a previous session when the subject cropped up. 

However, Debono insisted that the system was “very central to the case” and also to the defence’s arguments. 

AG lawyer Antoine Agius Bonnici countered that the magistrate had in no way pronounced herself on the merits of the case nor on the guilt or otherwise of the accused. 

Thus, there was no ground for recusal. 

As the sitting drew to an end, the prosecution requested the court to send the records of the case back to the AG’s office.

That would signify a six-week time window before the next sitting. 

The defence objected, requesting the court to fix another hearing at a closer date so that the prosecution might produce more substantial evidence while pointing out that the accused was still in preventive custody. 

The court upheld the defence’s request and appointed another hearing in August. 

Inspectors Tonjoe Farrugia and Alfredo Mangion prosecuted together with AG lawyers Antoine Agius Bonnici and Dejan Darmanin.

Lawyers Franco Debono, Marion Camilleri and Francesca Zarb were defence counsel.