The police are expected to file misappropriation charges over the cancelled holidays by Fantasy Tours as more reports continue to pour in, Times of Malta has learnt.

Sources close to the investigation said the police questioned a company official over payments made for holidays that never materialised. The person was questioned and released on police bail, the sources added, and charges were expected to be filed this week.

Other sources said Fantasy Tours had not paid its annual fees due to the Malta Tourism Authority for the past three years. These amount to about €4,000.

However, the company was still allowed to operate, despite several warnings issued by the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority.

According to the company registry of the Malta Financial Services Authority, the person responsible for Fantasy Tours, which also operates under Golden Travel Club Limited, is Karl Azzopardi, who lives in Mellieħa.

When Times of Malta went to the registered address, the gates were padlocked and there was no sign of any movement.

In the meantime, various police stations around the island continued to receive reports from irate customers who saw their holiday and money they had paid vanish into thin air.

Consumers who felt they had been taken for a ride by the tour operator expressed outrage on the various Facebook groups that have been set up in an attempt to recover their money.

The company cancelled tours via SMS on Wednesday, hours after urging customers who had booked holidays to also pay up for excursions.

One woman said she had paid more than €3,000 for a holiday that never happened. A man said he paid €608 in cash and another reported that he had paid for his holiday by cheque that was cashed just a few hours after he received the SMS saying his holiday had been cancelled.

Others complained they had spent thousands of euros on flights, accommodation and even cruises.

Until a day before the SMS was sent, the company’s offices were still accepting holiday bookings.

The Facebook groups are urging anyone who had booked any holiday with Fantasy Tours to file a police report and go to the consumer authority for guidance.