Roads contractor put on blacklist

Transport Minister Austin Gatt has directed Transport Malta to halt roads contractor Alfred Schembri and Sons from continuing any works on its behalf.

The ministerial order, transmitted by Dr Gatt directly to the regulator’s chairman, Mark Portelli, came a day after criminal charges were filed against 49-year-old George-Oliver Schembri, from Birżebbuġa, who runs the roadwork company. He is accused of defrauding the transport watchdog of more than €500,000.

The minister instructed Transport Malta to pass on these works and others that could have already been assigned but had not yet started to another contractor.

He also ordered it to withhold any payments due to the company and to withdraw any performance bonds underwritten by the regulator to make good for damages suffered by Transport Malta and the government for the roadwork projects undertaken by Mr Schembri’s company.

Mr Schembri was arraigned together with 35-year-old Transport Malta architect Gordon Zammit, from Sliema. The prosecution is alleging that they were running the fraud operation by inflating the cost of roadwork contracts and splitting the profits with the contractor. According to initial evidence given in court this week, the two allegedly managed to siphon off more than €500,000.

Police Inspector Angelo Gafa` said two of Mr Schembri’s employees, a project manager and an architect, would send in legitimate itemised bills of a finished road to Transport Malta. Unbeknown to them, Mr Zammit would then add other items to inflate the value of the works, the court heard.

Transport Malta would pay the bills and Mr Zammit and Mr Schembri would take the extra cheques to a third man, Godfrey Cutajar, 36, from Birżebbuġa, to have them cashed. Mr Cutajar would accept the cheques in return for fictitious sales of scrap metal, cash them and give them the money, Mr Gafà said.

Photograph of wrong plant

The photographs carried on page three and the front page teaser in The Times today featured a plant which has nothing to do with the bribery case now before the courts.

As indicated on the pictures themselves, the plant belongs to Schembri & Sons Ltd, which has no connection whatsoever with Alfred Schembri & Sons, which has been blacklisted by Transport Malta in connection with the bribery charges faced by a company director.

It must therefore be made amply clear that the firm Schembri & Sons Ltd and other companies forming part of the Frank Schembri Group of Companies have not been in any way blacklisted by Transport Malta or by any other authority.

The Times deeply regrets the error and the inconvenience caused to Schembri & Sons Ltd, its directors and employees.