No magisterial inquiry into Silvio Schembri’s 'unexplained' wealth

There will be no magisterial inquiry into the 'unexplained wealth' of Economy Minister Silvio Schembri after Jason Azzopardi’s appeal was shot down by a judge.

On 5 February, Magistrate Antoine Agius Bonnici refused Azzopardi’s request for a magisterial inquiry because the complaint, which consisted of a series of news articles concerning the Lands Authority, did not meet the legal requirements to warrant a magisterial inquiry.

Azzopardi appealed the decision, and on Friday (today), Judge Neville Camilleri upheld the magistrate’s judgement.

In his appeal, Azzopardi argued that the magistrate created an unequal playing field because Schembri had been afforded an audience to which he had not been present or informed about.

The judge insisted that the procedure to request a magisterial inquiry is not intended to determine guilt, but only to decide whether to open an inquiry in genere. Since that which Azzopardi complained of was attached to Schembri’s reply, the judge determined that the procedure was carried out according to the rights given by the law.

The judge said there was no link between the crimes indicated by Azzopardi in his complaint and the evidence brought forward. While the judge said that the court finds it perfectly acceptable to base accusations on journalistic articles, the reports presented by Azzopardi do not prove a particular offence committed by Schembri.

“It should be stated that at no moment do the articles brought forward by the complainant explain or declare that [Schembri] committed an offence. What these articles indicate is that there was allegedly mismanagement of public assets but nowhere indicate that [Schembri] was involved in the crimes indicated by the complainant, such as, inter alia, money laundering, bribery, or trading in influence.”

Regarding a signed declaration by Ivan Camilleri, as a journalist for The Shift, in which he said he stopped writing about the minister because he had been satisfied by the explanations given to him, the judge pointed out that the magistrate dismissed the document anyways.

In the original decision, the magistrate said the court cannot enter into the merits of all the documents presented by Schembri. “What must be determined is simply whether or not there are the prerequisites for access, and that the complaint was made in accordance with the law.”

READ ALSO: Magistrate turns down Jason Azzopardi’s request for inquiry into Silvio Schembri

Reacting to the court decision, Schembri thanked his family and Facebook followers for their support.

"For the second time, the Court has confirmed that the allegations against me and my family were nothing but mudslinging and a baseless attack. The Judge clearly ruled that what Jason Azzopardi presented neither proves nor states that I committed any crime," he said.