Bunker company formed to 'drain' MOBC despite conflict of interest
Island Bunker Oils Limited (IBOL), a company in which Enemalta chairman Tancred Tabone and his adviser Frank Sammut were silent partners, was set up specifically to ‘drain’ business away from MOBC, the corporation’s bunkering arm, a court was told today.
Mr Sammut also used to serve as CEO of MOBC.
Assistant Commissioner Michael Cassar testified in the case today during the compilation of evidence against Virtù Ferries director Francis Portelli and Anthony Cassar, chairman of Cassar Ship Repair. They owned remaining 50% shares in IBOL.
Portelli and Cassar are facing charges of corruption and money laundering.
Mr Cassar repeated evidence given last week when compilation proceedings against Mr Tabone and Mr Sammut were held.
He said the police were told that IBOL was formed in 2002. Mr Tabone and Mr Sammut were silent partners because of their conflict of interest. The company bought two bunkering vessels, Eldaren, which was renamed Golden Bay, and Oarsman. MOBC subsequently leased both vessels.
Mr Sammut was later bought out of the company after disagreements with the other directors. He was paid $500,000 for his 25 per cent share.
Mr Sammut had told the police that he was blackmailed by Mr Portelli over the commissions he used to receive from Trafigura for oil procurement contracts. Mr Portelli denied resorting to blackmail. However Trafigura receipts were found in his office.
Defence counsel Stephen Tonna Lowell said the ships were not owned by IBOL.
Mr Cassar said that the owners companies were linked to IBOL.
Popular Stories
Old buses, drivers to return
Former Judge Ray Pace found dead
Updated: Minister apologises for...
Three new Nationalist MPs elected –...
Where’s Everybody staff is given notice
Updated - Director of Prisons submits...
Update 4 - Eddie Fenech Adami stable...
Revealed...the face of a Maltese woman...
Update 3 - Woman trapped as car crashes...
In Discussion
Old buses, drivers to return
Updated: Minister apologises for...
Updated - Director of Prisons submits...
Enemalta seeking minimum five year gas...
Protected birds shot and trapped as...
Mario de Marco, Zammit Dimech concede,...
PN postpones salaries as financial...
Updated - PM's offer to Opposition MPs...
No appeals board for first part of power...
15 Comments
Post comment
Please sign in or create your Account to post comments.
Des G. Runtle
Mar 7th, 21:17
This all appears to have happened under the watchful eye of the privatisation unit as this company appears to have been set up when MOBC was first being privatised....
Charles Massa
Mar 7th, 19:23
Tajba din, mela l ministru jahtar persuni biex imexxu kumpanija parastatali, u dawn iwaqqfu kumpanija privata biex tkun kompetitur. Huma ixahmu bwiethom u l poplu ihallas. Hemm bzonn inkjesta serja
Edward Mallia
Mar 7th, 17:16
No minister - Gatt, his predecessor, & his successor -- seem to have had any suspicion of what was going on. It was as if all these ministries had the standard three monkeys over their main door, with three gorillas over the PM's portal, as befits the chief of the clan. How exactly they were spending their working time is not easy to guess. Some of them did not even send in their tax return!
pat muscat
Mar 7th, 15:19
X'misthija ta amministrazzjoni li ma kient taf b'xejn b'dan? Tell it to the marines!
T. Caruana
Mar 7th, 14:10
Our government should give pardon, because that is the only way we can learn more about what has happened in the Oil Procurement Scandal. I do feel it's highly unfair that one person gets a pardon and the others not. They can also contribute as rightful citizens and the right will prevail! Thanks the present administration for bringing the oil to the water's surface. Keep it up!
joe vella
Mar 7th, 14:42
thanks for the present administration to have allowed all this to happen under the noses of at least two ministers who both had no inkling of what was happening - they must have been wide asleep
Luciano Chetcuti
Mar 7th, 14:47
Give pardon? Rather than that, if found guilty, the government should confiscate all their possessions and send them to prison.
stephen koludrovic
Mar 7th, 14:50
Soon you will be saying that they should all get another golden handshake, keep all the money that they took, and give them the gieh ir republica medal.
Lawrence Attard
Mar 7th, 17:15
Int bis serjeta?!
Joseph Bartolo
Mar 7th, 13:16
FLASH NEWS..
Go to http://www.fiumalta.org/Court-Orders and check out the variations in the cases of seizure of assets for Tancred Tabone and Frank Sammut!
It seems that some people do not have smirks on their faces in court for nothing..
Pavlaki Pano Aroditis
Mar 7th, 15:51
Thank you Mr Bartolo. What this suggests is that any individual who is in risk of seizure of assets can very easily preemptively anticipate and circumvent this by transferring his assets to others (wife, mistress, children, siblings, etc). But do the Maltese authorities have the right to pursue and claw-back these assets? I think this is possible in the UK, but in Malta?
Joseph Bartolo
Mar 7th, 12:52
These people should not just be charged with theft but with treason.
Their alleged actions - if ultimately proven - must have caused misery to thousands of their fellow citizens; who knows how many depressions were caused by the artificially high costs of electricity and water caused by these thefts? I would take all they own and lock them away for life. And investigate all their relatives too!
Joseph Micallef
Mar 7th, 15:35
Mr Bartolo, I agree with some parts of what you wrote but not with what you state about artificially high costs. Actually the logical conclusion is that the oil was bought at a cheaper price then otherwise would have been bought because of inside information that was being fed. The real ones hurt were the others competing in the offers unless there was collusion which does not look like it.
Michael Sammut
Mar 7th, 12:43
And the Minister had "no inkling". Then who, pray who, was running the country? How can you have no inkling of matters so important? We all knew something was wrong in Enemalta. Finanzi fis-Sod indeed.
Joseph Micallef
Mar 7th, 15:31
Mr Sammut whoever participates in such activities makes every effort to cover his tracks so it does not surprise me the minister had "no inkling" on what was happenning. What really surpeises me is that you state that you knew and did nothing about it and that makes you an accomplice in the crime.
Please choose the reason of your report below: