Former Enemalta chairman Alex Tranter appeared in court today charged with misappropriating public funds through the use of the corporation's credit card abroad.

Mr Tranter, 51, from Swieqi, who pleaded "definitely not guilty", is charged with misuse of funds when he was chairman of the State energy provider in 2007 and 2008.

He was chairman between 2005 and 2010.

Defence lawyer Joe Giglio, however, hit out at the prosecution's thesis that expenses not accompanied by receipts automatically resulted in misappropriation of funds, without delving into how the funds were spent and on what.

Police Inspector Jonathan Ferris said investigations revealed that Mr Tranter spent €529 on a mobile phone, withdrew £200 from Gatwick airport when he was not on the corporation's official travel list and spent Lm1035 on October 27, 2007 that was not backed by a receipt.

Mr Ferris said that with regard to a trip to London in 2010, Mr Tranter's personal assistant Bronia Mercieca asked whether she could accompany the delegation. Mr Tranter accepted, as long as she paid her expenses.

Two other members of the delegation stayed in the Holiday Inn Hotel while Mr Tranter and Ms Mercieca stayed in two separate rooms at the Hilton Hotel. As they were checking out, Mr Tranter offered to pay Ms Mercieca's lodging expenses as a gesture of goodwill since she had attended a last-minute business breakfast on behalf of the company as no one else could attend.

Mr Ferris said Mr Tranter paid €609 for the lodging and that according to him this amounted to misuse of public funds.

Mr Tranter explained that this was only a gesture of goodwill and she had volunteered to attend the meeting even though she was in London while she was on vacation leave.

Dr Giglio questioned Mr Ferris at length on this, saying the executive chairman had the power to take such decisions and also quoted the Enemalta Act saying the chairman only needed approval on transactions greater than €2.3 million.

Mr Ferris confirmed that the hotel stays were backed by receipts.

Asked about the withdrawal, Mr Ferris said this was made when Mr Tranter was not on the official travel list and he confirmed that Mr Tranter had told him that he would often fit in Enemalta meetings while abroad on other work and would then bill the related expenses to Enemalta.

"I have no evidence to show that he used them for his personal use except that there was no receipt and not on official travel list," he said, visibly uncomfortable with the pressure.

Mr Ferris said Mr Tranter had also purchased a laptop with company funds but did not return the equipment when he was no longer chairman.  The case, presided over by Magistrate Audrey Demicoli, continues next month.

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