Fenech 'did not know' of tax fraud investigation involving George Farrugia before pardon was granted
Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said this evening that he did not know that the Tax Compliance Unit was investigating Aikon Ltd, a company in which George Farrugia was one of the main shareholders, until he received e-mails from The Times with questions on the oil procurement scandal.
George Farrugia.Speaking at a press conference, Mr Fenech said he did not know about the investigation before Mr Farrugia was granted the presidential pardon for information on the oil procurement case, on February 8. He learnt of the investigation on February 13.
The pardon, he stressed, does not cover any tax fraud, if it results.
He said the investigation is in an advanced stage, but had been widened to include all companies which Aikon had traded with.
Mr Fenech said the head of the Security Service had, in August 2011, requested the Finance Ministry to ask the Tax Compliance Unit to investigate Aikon Ltd. Documents covering the period 2004-2010 were handed by the head of the Security Service to the Ministry's head of Secretariat, who immediately passed them on to the TCU.
The head of secretariat did not see the documents, nor did he inform the minister about them.
"The ministry was only the messenger," Mr Fenech said, although he added that this was the first time in his nine years as parliamentary secretary and minister that he had come across a case when the head of the Security Service had requested the investigation.
He noted that both the head of the Security Service and the TCU were covered by legislation which meant they were not answerable to the Finance Ministry.
He, therefore, was not informed of the specifics of the investigation, or the amounts possibly involved.
Mr Fenech said he never met Mr Farrugia and the name did not ring a bell when the presidential pardon was discussed. He noted that Aikon had passed completely into Mr Farrugia's hands after 2010.
The minister said the investigation included a Swiss bank account. The investigation, he said, had taken some time because at the time when it started, Maltese and Swiss regulators did not have the arrangements in place to exchange information on tax matters, a situation which had since changed.
Should any tax fraud result, all due taxes and penalties would have to be paid, he said.
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39 Comments
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Grace Scicluna
Feb 19th, 19:23
do you really think we believe all that , that he did not know him.
You think the Maltese people are stupid?
this is an insult to our intelligence.
Make him pay before the pardon.
GONZI do something please, or we and so many nationlists are going to give their vote to a minority party like ALTERNATIVA. so not to rock the boat .
Anthony Grech
Feb 19th, 16:28
Sewwa kien qal Gonzi lill-ambaxxatrici Amerikana.. li ghandu team batut ta' nies biex jahtarhom ministri.
Donnu kull ministru jew ma jafx, jew ma kienx jaf, jew nesa jew mhux hu jew......
Anthony Grech
Feb 19th, 16:25
Fenech 'did not know' of tax fraud investigation ........MISKIN!!
R. Cilia
Feb 19th, 13:22
One minister does not know of a serious case of VAT fraud and another one forgets to declare the money in his bank account! Dik serjeta!!
Grace Scicluna
Feb 19th, 19:28
oh bis-serjeTA ? I hope the Police will not forget to arrest him and the Internal REVENUE will not forget to charge him TAXES PLUS A PENALTY for forgetting.............NO EXCUSES.
These people even if they are MINISTERS ...............................HAVE TO PAY !
Xi hsibtuna ahna il- Maltin............stupid ?
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 19th, 12:34
Fenech never seems to know anything unless it comes out in the public. What kind of control does this minister have over his ministry and departments? Its so easy to deny responsibility because you did not know - but he is responsible because he should have known.
Joseph Cauchi Senior
Feb 19th, 11:42
Imma kif kollox politika!
Alla ħares, il-Ministru jkollu jkun jaf kull investigazzjoni li jkun hemm fit-Tax Compliance Unit meta hemm mijiet jew eluf ta’ każi għall-investigazzjonijiet!
Hemm nies appuntati apposta għal dawn l-investigazzjonijiet u għalhekk nħalluhom jaħdmu.
U jekk jogħġobkom ejja nkunu serji fil-kummenti tagħna u mhux partiġġjani!
JC.
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 19th, 12:35
The Minister could have at elast opened the file and saw of there is anything worth investigating. The fact that the file was the only one 9 years to be given from the Secret Service did not seem to alarm Fenech. He just got rid of it and passed it on. Has he no sense of alarm or checking when things are so serious?
francis mallia
Feb 19th, 12:42
inti mhux parteggian mela ?
G Buhagiar
Feb 19th, 11:34
Hadd ma jkun jaf xejn f'dal-pajjiz. Naqra ta farka kulhadd jaf lil kulhadd. Naqa difficli biex titwemmen, imma nsomma riesqa l-elezzjoni u kulhadd jilghaba tal-innocenti. Hadd ma jaf xejn. Nippruvaw naqghtu mela x'seta' gara...
Ronnie Callus
Feb 19th, 11:06
Mela ghidlu lil Poplu xkont qed tghamel hemm bhala Ministru li avdak biex tehodlu hsieb flusu. Il-500 euro hrigtuhom idejjkom imma !! irresponsabilta le. Nisperaw li johorgu l-fatti sewwa u mhux inbengla halli kulhadd jiehu li haqqu.Il-POPLU QED JISTENNA JUSTIZZJA MIEGHU u mhux mghodija taz-zmien.Ghalhekk ivvota bil-qalb Dr.Gonzi biex ahna nhallsu kontijiet tad-dawl u ilma gholja !!!!
Mr Joe Micallef
Feb 19th, 10:20
God forbid a minister is aware of such ongoing investigations!
Francis Saliba M.D.
Feb 19th, 11:32
@ Joe Micallef
A minister being held "aware of such investigations" would doubtlessly be maliciously misinterpreted as an interference by a dirty tricks LP propaganda machine spouting the usual dirty unproven allegations.
Donald Funkhouser
Feb 19th, 10:07
Got to ask this question and be really blunt with it, “Are Maltese Ministers really this ignorant? Such a small and very beautiful island, but yet so full of scandal.” All politicians are the same over all the world.
Mr Andrew Camilleri
Feb 19th, 12:37
What is worse here is that unless a minister is found criminally guilty, he will not resign. They have no sense of responsibility; they have no idea what is going on their ministry and departments; they look the other way when something serious crops up. But they agree that it is Ok to given themselves heft rise in salary.
Robert Agius
Feb 19th, 10:03
So, one doesn't know what goes on in one's own quarters, but know what goes on in other.
Sigh!
Anth. Xuereb
Feb 19th, 11:53
PERFECTLY SAID.
S Kelly
Feb 19th, 09:42
Tonio Fenech is one of the best ministers that Malta has ever had. So correct, eloquent, intelligent, well-informed, honest and above all a man of principles!
Guido Farrugia
Feb 19th, 11:31
Kwazi qabbistli d-dmugh.
Noel Mifsud
Feb 19th, 14:22
lol din sabiha dil kummiedja.
Cristinu Vella
Feb 19th, 14:53
Are you serious Mr Kelly,you not thinkink of some Irish government or politision back in the old country, but surely not Tonio Fenech.
Mario Camilleri
Feb 19th, 09:39
The Presidential pardon was a farce. The people are confused whether they will be recompensated and by how much if that will be the case. Moreover we don't know who is responsible and will shoulder political responsibility. So far ministers and the PM are escaping from shouldering political responsibility. Billions of Euro were paid out of public coffers. Can they tell us why they wanted €600?
Charlo Agius
Feb 19th, 09:31
Il-puzzle qeda tinghaqad ftit ftit ......
A. Xuereb
Feb 19th, 08:50
Hearing Dr Austin Gatt and Dr Tonio Fenech speak the way they do makes us really wonder how justified the Prime Minister was in giving out a 500 Euro pay rise to the cabinet! It seems their ministries were being run on auto pilot, We wonder what else went unnoticed under their very noses.Sorry gentlemen but you are not fit for purpose.
Pav Elliot
Feb 19th, 08:37
Another piece of a very messy / 'oily' puzzle. Tax payers are simply glued to their screens, trying to piece it all together. In the meantime our learned ministers claim that that his ministry was 'only a messanger'.
Mr. Minister, the job you holds exists to safeguard the interests of tax payers, and if you does not know what is going on, and not managing it properly, then remove yourself.
j brincat
Feb 19th, 08:24
Have they ever heard of political responsibility whether individual or collective?
Does not seem so!
But then you see them all beaming when they have a camera in front of them.
But when the going gets tough you see them like infants shouting "Not me" at the top of their voice!
And the charade goes on and on!
jb
J Cauchi
Feb 19th, 08:03
Aust did not know anything about Ennmalta
Fenech did not know about Tax investigation and
you think were going to trust you another 5 years
to sit pretty and let things go by ..... NOT THIS TIME
susan matrenza
Feb 19th, 07:44
Fejn irid ma jkunx jaf x'qed jigri l-ministru! La s-secret service qalu lil-ministeru tal-finanzi bir-rapport u dawn ghaddewh lit-TCU mhux suppost kellu jkun jaf. Dan mhux kaz li gahan mar jirraporta lil-Rozi, imma S-Secret Services ta!!!! jigifieri veru ftit nies Importanti ikunu jafu bir-rapporti taghhom! Hallina Tonio!
j brincat
Feb 19th, 07:30
Only in Malta!
Here our top echelons love playing at the proverbial three monkeys when it suits them!
jb
Thomas Anderson
Feb 19th, 07:18
So why was Mr Tonio Fenech paid as a minister, he was unaware of everything that was happening in his ministry. Mr Tonio Fenech used the same excuse when the vat scandal came out, and the tax payers continue to pay his salary for doing next to nothing.Will someone PLEASE take POLITICAL RESPONSABILITY like other civilised countries.
J Martinelli
Feb 19th, 17:29
Quite rich saying that the minister should take political responsibility.
When is Joseph taking responsibility for his deputy leader causing a delay of pending prosecution against two Labour club members coming to blows in Attard? And worse covering up a case involving 'white powder', or 'white block' or as trivialized by Joseph, a mere 'ice-cube'? How about Abela lying about not telling JM?
Giocchino Attard
Feb 19th, 07:17
fejn ma jaqblilomx ma jafu xejn kemm hu sew tiprova tahsel idek.
Anthony Galdes
Feb 19th, 00:09
Typical denial behaviour! I wonder what exactly are our PN ministers aware of! Looks like our country has be an auto-pilot ignoring! It would have been more respectful if Minister admitted that maybe at the time it did noy appear 'serious'!
Gordon Swain
Feb 18th, 23:14
Bir rispett kollu mela ghalfejn qeghdin hemm il-ministri, biex jiehdu hames mija zieda fil-gimgha u allajbierek hadd ma jaf b'xejn. dejjaqtuna toffendu l-intelligenza tal-poplu malti. MIN TAHSBU LI INTOM?
Willie Grech
Feb 18th, 22:47
Ok, let me try and get all this. Tonio Fenech is saying that one of his departments is investigating a company after the secret service asked it to do so. Both the minister and his head of secretariat knew that the secret service were investigating Farrugia. And yet, minister Fenech, wants us to believe that he never knew anything about this investigation. Yes, go tell that to the marines!!
John Zammit
Feb 18th, 22:30
Don't you think kidding by claiming that you didn't know
Kenneth Williams
Feb 18th, 21:47
Mela xkienu qed jghamlu l ministri....hadd ma jaf xejn....l aqwa li hadu 500 zieda FL GIMGHA'.......
J Martinelli
Feb 19th, 17:19
Kenneth Williams, il-Ministru mhux suppost ikun jaf b'xi investigazzjoni li tkun qed issir fuq xi fergha tal-ministeru tieghu, biex bl-ebda mod ma jkun jista jintervjeni.
Imma haga semplici bhal din, la int u lanqas il-Lejber Party ma jifmuha. Ara kemm tghaffig isir jekk il-Lejber jitla fil-gvern! Nerghu lura ghal dak iz-zmien meta l-ministri jindahlu f'kollox u jaqdu biss lill-Laburisti!
jere roughton
Feb 18th, 20:54
so if i do some sort of fraud and that means grand fraud not thousands but millions and after making more than enough i decide to be a supergrass and hide nearly all the money and tell everything i can just walk free ?? now that is stupidity at least give him a hefty fine and the rest this is madness
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