A court has acquitted a Gozo Channel employee of fabricating a maritime certificate to work as a boatswain.

The case had come to light in September 2009 when Gozo Channel captain Mario Grech filed a judicial protest against the company, alleging serious safety shortcomings on the part of the company and mentioned this case.

The accused, 71-year-old Joseph Angileri had left the company, but re-joined in 2007 as part of a team conducting an internal audit tasked to obtain the International Safety Management Code certification.

In May 2009, a certain Angelo Demanuele had been appointed boatswain following an internal call on the strength of his previous 13-year stint in this post which he had left to work as a night security.

The court heard that the selection board had awarded Mr Demanuele full marks for the relevant knowledge, experience and qualifications.  But it later transpired that the employee was not in possession of the mandatory EDH (efficient deck-hand) certificate, as this had not been obligatory in his first stint as boatswain.

No evidence was presented to prove that the accused had actually forged the document himself

Subsequently, Mr Demanuele had asked for a copy of this certificate from the accused who said that in the employee’s file there was a document which he stamped as a true copy of the original. The defendant, however, told the court that the original certificates were kept by the employees themselves and not kept in the company’s archives. Mr Demanuele had testified that he had not seen the accused forging the document.

During the proceedings, court-appointed expert Anthony Abela Medici had confirmed that Mr Demanuele’s certificate had been forged, saying that the document had originally been issued to another man.

On his part, the defendant insisted he did not see anything wrong with the fact that Mr Demanuele has previously occupied such post.

In its decision, the court presided by Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera noted that there were no doubts that the defendant was to blame for administrative shortcomings saying that his handling was not recommendable.

It said, however, that the only witness who had cast a shadow on the accused, was Mr Demanuele who was an accomplice and so had to be treated with caution.

The court said Mr Demanuele was fully aware that the document was false as he had never acquired this certificate. It added that no evidence was presented to prove that the accused had actually forged the document himself. 

The defendant was guilty for issuing a true copy without actually having the original in hand, the court said.  In this case, Mr Angileri should have been charged with filing a false declaration and not forging the document, the magistrate added.

Consequently, the man was not found guilty.