Shaukat Asad Ali accused of bribing public officials, participating in organised crime

Shaukat Asad Ali, son of the Pakistani businessman at the centre of the Vitals Global Healthcare scandal, Shaukat Ali Chaudhry, has been charged with money laundering, fraud and organised crime and hit with a multimillion euro seizure and freezing order.

Ali appeared in court on Wednesday after travelling to Malta voluntarily in order to be arraigned.

Magistrate Leonard Caruana presided over the arraignment, in which Ali did not appear in court under arrest. The defendant, through his lawyer, declared to the court that he had come to court voluntarily and declared himself as notified both on a personal basis and on behalf of Eurasia limited and Tunisian companies STE Health Co and Incorp Sarl.

Ali alone was charged with having in the years between 2013 and 2023, being involved in organised crime and participation in the same. He was further accused of bribing former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, former OPM Chief of Staff Keith Schembri, former Minister Konrad Mizzi, as well as Steward's - previously Vitals’ - accountant Christopher Spiteri.

He is accused of offences relating to money laundering, trading in influence fraud, making fraudulent gain to the detriment of the Government of Malta and conspiracy to commit an imprisonable crime in Malta.

Ali and Eurasia Ltd alone were further charged with bribery, false accounting, misappropriation, failing to declare relevant income to VAT authorities between 2017-2020, making false declarations to VAT and Inland Revenue departments in that period.

A freezing order amounting to some €23 million was requested.

Ali, who described his occupation as a business development consultant, replied “absolutely not guilty” when asked what he was pleading to the charges. Joseph Muscat, too, had used that phrase, during his own arraignment last week.

At the start of the sitting the prosecution requested the separation of the proceedings against STE Health Company and those against the rest of the defendants.

Repubblika’s lawyer, Jason Azzopardi gave notice to the court that he had filed an application earlier this morning requesting the NGO be permitted to join the suit as parte civile.

The Registrar of Courts, Franklin Calleja, testified that yesterday the prosecution had filed a request for the exhibition of the Vitals inquiry in the acts of these proceedings, which was yet to be approved by the inquiring magistrate.

Prosecutor Rebekah Spiteri said the prosecution had relied on the inquiry  to quantify the amount, which meant that the law had been adhered to. “Previously, the law did not impose an obligation on the prosecution to substantiate their request. Now the law does and we have kept with it.”

“The law is clear that the court shall either issue a seize and freeze order or a temporary seize and freeze order,” replied Ghaznavi. “This means that the court is not a rubber stamp but must make some sort of evaluation before choosing which to apply.

“In the present case, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to see whether the offences are relevant offences or not, but when it comes to reasonable cause for seizure, the court is called upon to make an evaluation. In the case we have today, there is currently in place an attachment order which will fall when the seize and freeze order is issued. So there is no fear that these assets will somehow be diminished or disposed of for the time being.”

He suggested that the court had insufficient evidence before it at this stage to justify the acceptance of the AG’s request. 

The court, after having seen the prosecution’s request for the issuing of a seizure and freezing order, and after hearing the parties’ submissions on the matter, as well as referring to the law, acceded to the prosecution’s request and issued an order for freezing and seizing  over Assad Shaukat Ali for €22 million and Eurasia €1.1 million and €100,000 over Incorp. 

The Director of the Asset Recovery Bureau was also ordered to investigate, find and list any other assets controlled by the defendants for this purpose.

Following the issuing of this order, the defence requested the court allow Ali to withdraw an annual sum of up to €21,945 per annum in terms of law. 

The prosecution asked the court to order Ali not to disclose or share any document submitted in court with the media or on social media. Ali would be required to give advance notice to the court should he intend to leave the Maltese islands for work or leisure and provide a personal guarantee to ensure his observance of those conditions.

Ghaznavi said he would be objecting to the request for an order prohibiting the disclosure of documents if it only bound the defendant and not third parties who are not accredited journalists from making public statements to which the defendant would be prohibited from replying to.

With regards to the requested guarantee, the lawyer stressed that Ali had come to court voluntarily. 

A decree on the requests will be given in chambers, said the magistrate.

While the parties discussed the date for the next sitting. Ghaznavi explained that the defence had been waiting for a copy of the evidence since May 21 and was yet to receive it. The magistrate said he was aware of this. 

The case was adjourned to 9am on June 21.

Superintendent Hubert Cini and police Inspector Wayne Rodney Borg will be prosecuting, assisted by prosecutors Francesco Refalo, Rebekah Spiteri and Shelby Aquilina.

Lawyer Shazoo Ghaznavi and Jessica Formosa are assisting Ali as defence counsel.