High ranking Enemalta official cleared of misappropriation, fraud

A former high-ranking Enemalta official has been emphatically cleared of misappropriation, fraud and credit card misuse, with a court ruling the man should never have been charged in the first place.

The 64-year-old former Enemalta Head of Human Resources, Anthony Bonello, had been prosecuted over allegations of misappropriation, fraud and misuse of credit cards dating back several years before 2014.

But magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit, presiding over the case said that there was no solid evidence and that “the entire case had been structured upon conjecture and distorted proof as to what had or had not been done by the accused.”

The Court said, in no uncertain terms, that all the evidence exhibited painted an entirely different picture of the accused to that alleged by the prosecution. Bonello, in his time as Head of Human Resources, had always had his workers’ interests at heart and done his best to maintain a healthy relationship with all unions, particularly those which protected the rights of Enemalta employees, the court observed.

With regards to the alleged offences, the court had heard Enemalta Chairman, Frederick Azzopardi, testify that Bonello had been entitled to a €500 allowance, and a Visa card to cover work expenses. The Executive Head of Finances at the company had testified that there had never been any issues regarding Bonello’s expenses, the court noted.

The accused himself had given a plausible explanation to the police, and investigators had failed to question all those involved, the court observed.

In the light of the evidence exhibited, the court acquitted Bonello, ruling that the prosecution had failed to cast “the slightest doubt” on the accused and to bring “a single shred of evidence” against him.

Lawyer Joseph Giglio was defence counsel.