Businessman Sandro Maggi recounted to the court yesterday how he was allegedly defrauded by Joseph Friggieri, 46, of Msida.

Mr Maggi, 46, said he had been left in a financial mess because of what Mr Friggieri did to him.

Mr Friggieri, he said, had defrauded him of €11,000 and the situation was so bad that he would have to take his daughters out of Chiswick School after the end of term in December, because he could not afford to pay the school bills.

He said he first met Mr Friggieri in court, where he had an argument with him, and then in Bugibba, where a very well dress Mr Friggieri had apologised for the court incident and told him that his family were Busy Bee Confectioners.

Mr Maggi said that Mr Friggieri called him one day and asked him for €6,000 for five days because he had a container coming over and needed to pay VAT.

He had also told him he worked at the Education Deparment and Mr Maggi said he had asked him if he could get his children to De La Salle College.

Mr Friggieri, he said, had told him he could but against a payment of €2,700 which were needed for uniforms and books.

He gave him a telephone number for Ray Micallef, who Mr Friggieri had claimed was Minister Dolores Cristina’s secretary. It turned out that this Mr Micallef did not exist, Mr Maggi claimed.