Parliamentary Secretary's former driver conditionally discharged over vandalism claim
A 28-year-old man from Zejtun was this morning conditionally discharged for two years after pleading guilty to damaging a car and filing a false police report.
Clive Bianco, who used to be Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea’s driver, had, on December 24, filed a police report saying that someone had vandalised Mr Galea's official car.
Mr Galea had last seen the car the night before at around midnight when Mr Bianco drove him home.
Originally, Mr Bianco had told the police he had then gone to his brother’s house and stayed there till around 3 a.m. and then went home. He had said that in morning he found the car scratched and with obscene words written on it, dented and with two stones next to it.
However, when the police spoke to him and eventually to his brother they realised there were discrepancies and suspected he was not telling truth.
When they confronted him with the different versions he decided to tell the truth and explain that after he took Mr Galea home he had gone to Ghaxaq to meet a friend with whom he stayed until 3 a.m.
He then slept on the wheel while driving home and crashed into a rubble wall. He drove home but decided to go back to the place where he crashed. He told the police he had wanted to call them but was afraid of losing his job. So he got a stone and scratched the car to make it look like an act of vandalism.
He took the stone with him, parked and put stone next to car. He then filed the false police report the next morning.
On hearing his guilty plea, the court conditionally discharged him. It took into consideration the fact that he cooperated in the investigations, had filed an early guilty plea and that he had also lost his job.
Drs Franco Debono and Marion Camilleri were defence counsel.
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Tracy Caruana
Jul 13th 2010, 17:51
Imn'Alla li min kien inqabad jew ammetta ghax kieku dan l-episodju kien ikun issue fl-elezzjoni li gejja bis-swaba jippuntaw lejn il-vandali laburisti. L-istess bhal kaz ta' Raymond Caruana li sena wara l-ohra, ghax hadd ma nqabad, il-htija ghadha sal lum tintefa fuq il-laburisti.
A. Mizzi
Jul 13th 2010, 17:21
Was the frame-up on the Labour Party with the media coverage it got taken into consideration when giving out the sentence or just the vandalisation of the car?
Will Parliamentary Secretary's former driver pay for the damage on the car? It would not be fair if the damage was repaired out of tax-payer's funds.
Another case of mickey-mouse justice and hopefully the sentence will not be a benchmark for future crimes when brought to "justice" ....sic
mario scerri
Jul 13th 2010, 15:01
l-impotanti li s-Sur Clive Bianco pprova jpoggi f'dawl ikrah lil-laburisti. Nispera li jiehu l-azzjoni mehtiega s-Sur Mario Galea.
N.Lawrence
Jul 13th 2010, 14:48
This just goes to re-enforce the argument that these cars should be kept in an official garage when the ministers have finished with them and NOT left as playthings for their drivers.
A Abela
Jul 13th 2010, 14:36
Did he pay for the car repairs? or did we have to fork them out from our taxes?
Fenech MD
Jul 13th 2010, 14:33
U ghal hsara li ghamel ma hallasx?
It-taxxi tal-poplu se jaghmel tajjeb ghall-ispejjez fuq il-karozza?
c camilleri
Jul 13th 2010, 14:21
Who will now take responsibility for blaming PL thugs for this act of cowardice, sheer vandalism and outright abuse with governments/national property/assets? Who will make a public apology? Who will pay for this abuse? Losing the job is not enough. This guy has to pay for the court, lawyers, police costs together with all the repairs related to this car which is a government and therefore national property.
What about the mud thrown towards Labour? Who will humble himself and do the cleaning now?