Magistrate denies any property dealings with her husband’s business partner

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera yesterday denied in court having any property dealings with her husband’s business partner but admitted to having power of attorney and acting on his behalf.

The magistrate yesterday took the witness stand in a case against columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia for defaming her in a series of blog entries which began in January.

Magistrate Scerri Herrera was replying to questions put by defence lawyer Roberto Montalto who, referring to her previous testimony on March 8, asked her why she felt defamed by certain parts of the blog which she highlighted in her previous testimony.

During the cross examination, the magistrate denied having any property dealings with a Gozitan lawyer who, she said, was her husband’s business partner.

In fact, she said, when her husband had wanted to deal in property the couple split their assets. The only property she had in Gozo was a flat and a garage.

Asked if she had power of attorney for the Gozitan lawyer, the witness said she did at one point when she went to a local council to get permission for a bulldozer to enter a site because a structure was in danger of collapsing.

She elaborated that there was an occasion, when her husband was abroad, that she was asked to go to the local council on behalf of the Gozitan lawyer, who could not make it either.

Dr Montalto questioned her about a report made by a man to the Commission for the Administration of Justice alleging that the magistrate had business dealings with this Gozitan lawyer and then handed down a judgment in his favour.

Magistrate Scerri Herrera said she had given her testimony to the commission and had not heard anything since because the proceedings were secret. She did not know if the case was still pending.

In another allegation in the blog, the columnist said that the magistrate was a friend of Maltatoday editor, Saviour Balzan.

Magistrate Scerri Herrera replied that she was not his friend especially since he had attacked her father who had passed away 15 years ago.

She added that her partner, architect Robert Musumeci, was a columnist for the newspaper. Once she happened to be at a party with around 80 other people and Mr Balzan was there, but they were not friends.

Dr Montalto questioned her about the allegation in the blog that she had told dinner party guests at her home that Mrs Caruana Galizia had a domestic dispute with her (Mrs Caruana Galiza’s) husband and the story would appear the following day in Maltatoday.

The magistrate said the incident was discussed at the dinner table and was brought up by her friends who were discussing different issues. She denied speaking to any of the newspapers about it.

She denied mentioning it to just two people present at the dinner adding that, if she had, all 10 guests would have been present.

The magistrate was asked if she had ever employed her partner, Mr Musumeci, as a court expert. She said that she previously had done so just as other members of the judiciary had.

She added that she had stopped appointing him about a year-and-a-half ago. Asked why she understood a reference in the blog to talcum powder in a party as being a reference to drugs, she said she had already explained in the other sitting and did not need to reply again.

In March she had said she never used drugs and had never been to a party where drugs were used or where a person who had convictions for drugs was present.

Yesterday she said that she organised parties once a year for her birthday and also held parties for philanthropic causes. She personally invited her friends, about 20, for such events and asked them to bring along their own friends.