A customs official, a Freeport security officer and a stevedore were charged with stealing a container full of a fake brand of cigarettes valued at more than €1 million.
The three men allegedly stole the container that had been impounded at the Freeport with 4.5 million fake cigarettes and returned it empty.
Billy (Amabile) Grech, 44, from Żejtun, a senior customs assistant and Michael Sciberras, 39, from Valletta, an assistant security officer at the Freeport, were separately charged with committing a crime they were duty bound to prevent.
They were charged along with stevedore, Rocky (Rokku) Agius, 53, from Qormi of stealing the container on February 13.
The three men pleaded not guilty but were remanded in custody after Magistrate Ian Farrugia refused bail.
Police collected video evidence from CCTV cameras
The prosecution led by Inspector Rennie Stivala from the Economic Crimes unit said the container arrived in Malta on board the MV Verdi on February 2. It contained 450 boxes, each containing 10,000 cigarettes branded Empire Royals. The value of €1 million includes VAT and excise duty.
Inspector Stivala said the police were tipped off by the Freeport at noon on February 14 that the container had gone missing. The police collected video evidence from CCTV cameras at the Birżebbuġa port facility.
He said the investigation was still going on and asked the court to refuse bail since the police still had to question a number of witnesses.
Defence lawyers Giannella de Marco, who appeared for Mr Agius, Veronique Dalli, who appeared for Mr Sciberras, and Pawlu Lia, who appeared for Mr Grech, argued their clients had a clean police conduct.
They asked the court to grant them bail, given that the police already had video evidence that supposedly proved the alleged crime.
However, the court denied the request in light of the seriousness of the case.
It was Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia and Economy Minister Chris Cardona who broke the news of the investigation at a press conference held minutes before the arraignment.
Dr Mallia said this showed the government’s resolve to act on any allegation of corruption.
He said the container was on transhipment and had been scanned on arrival in Malta. It was held after the cigarettes infringed intellectual property rights. He insisted the container should have never left the Freeport.
The case comes hot on the heels of an incident involving Enemalta officials who tampered with smart meters, costing the corporation millions of euros in lost revenue.
But it seems these will not be the last cases. At yesterday’s press conference, Dr Cardona said another two cases of corruption involving public officers would come to light in the coming days. He did not elaborate.
ksansone@timesofmalta.com