A man who siphoned off more than €345,000 from his employer over two years – using the stolen money to buy expensive cars and motorcycles – has been jailed for 10 years.
In the process, he has drawn attention to the alleged involvement of his own father, who is now being investigated.
Vince Etienne Vella, a 35-year-old accounts clerk from San Ġwann, was also fined €95,000 by Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech, who found him guilty of “a textbook case” of “well studied” money laundering.
In spite of his clean criminal record, the court found that the accused had devised “a meticulous plan to get rich with other people’s money over a long period of time, which fed his greed and made him want even more.
“Once his financial position did not allow him to live such a lavish life, he devised a plan to live a good life to the detriment of people who had trusted him and had given him a job,” the magistrate said her judgment.
She also ordered the Police Commissioner to investigate Mr Vella’s father, Emanuel, after hearing how most of the funds had been transferred by his son to a bank account held in his name.
Most of the cars purchased with the money were also registered in the father’s name.
Two years ago, the First Hall of the Civil Court ordered Mr Vella to repay the entire amount to his former employer.
He devised a meticulous plan to get rich with other people’s money over a long period of time, which fed his greed and made him want even more
Last week, the magistrate passed judgment in the criminal case brought against him by Police Inspectors Ivan Cilia and Anna Maria Micallef.
Magistrate Frendo Dimech found that Vince Etienne Vella, who went by the name Ċensu, misappropriated the funds of Fenplay Limited, formerly CBM Bookmaker International Limited, during his employment between August 2007 and August 2009.
Mr Vella’s father was implicated in the case after the court heard that his son had transferred nearly €200,000 into his HSBC account via internet banking.
Mr Vella joined Fenplay on August 1, 2007. He was responsible for the company’s bank accounts and payments to its clients, suppliers and creditors.
Just three months after he joined, he began transferring the company’s funds to various people, including his father, and used the monies to purchase, among other things, vehicles, motorcycles and spare parts.
Police Inspector Cilia testified that Mr Vella told the police that he “was leading a good life”.
He had been going through a difficult financial patch, so he decided to use company funds for his personal use, with the intention to immediately replace them. However, when no one realised what was happening, he continued siphoning off the funds.
He told the police that he had “lost count” of how much he had taken. He had purchased four cars and two motorbikes, including a Harley Davidson and a scooter.
A Transport Malta official told the court that Mr Vella’s father had several cars registered in his name, including a Subaru Impreza, a Harley Davidson and a Honda S2000. The vehicles were registered in 2008. On his part, Mr Vella had a Westfield Sports Buggy, a Piaggio Runner and a Fiat Panda registered in his name.
The court also heard that Mr Vella had purchased a gold Rolex with diamonds embossed on its dials, for which he had paid some €13,000. According to court experts, there had been some 71 unauthorised transactions from the firm’s accounts.