Two witnesses in the money laundering trial of a Panamanian man claimed that he asked them to send money to his home country and Spain because he was so busy he could not do so himself.

The men, Yasir Mendoza and José Reuben Rodriguez, were questioned by the police over their involvement in what prosecutors say is a money laundering scheme in which €360,000 left the country in 2006.

Since the two men no longer live in Malta, lawyer Lara Lanfranco, from the Attorney General’s Office, read out their testimonies given in the Magistrates Court during the compilation of evidence against Eduardo Navas Rios, 30 from Panama.

He is pleading not guilty to money laundering, theft and illegal possession of a firearm in October, 2006.

In their testimony the men said they used to work for the accused and his girlfriend, Simone Sciberras, who owned the gay nightclub Closet in Paceville. Mr Mendoza worked as a make-up artist while Mr Rodriguez was a dancer.

They said the accused would ask them to wire money to Panama or Barcelona and told them that he would do it himself but was very busy. In return he would take them out to meals and give them cash or help pay their rent.

On Monday, the jurors heard how the cousin of the accused, Domingo Navas, was cleared last year of drug trafficking which was part of the money laundering investigation.

Dr Lanfranco told the court that an estimated €349,500 were transferred from Malta to Panama. Suspicious activity started being noticed when a transfer of some €65,000 was made into a bank account belonging to Ms Sciberras.

During the trial yesterday, the prosecution closed its case and the jurors are expected to retire to deliberate today.