Twice Oscar-winner to give evidence by video-conferencing in Patrick Spiteri case

A well-respected international composer is to be cross-examined via video-conferencing from Montecarlo where he resides, in a criminal case where he is the victim of an alleged fraud of £150,000.

Double Oscar winner Bricusse had already travelled to Malta in May 2005 to give his evidence against disgraced lawyer Patrick Spiteri, who is charged with misappropriating the funds entrusted to him to invest in Malta.

Soon after giving his evidence before Magistrate Jacquline Padovani Grima in 2005, Bricusse had sworn never to return to Malta, claiming to be "once bitten, twice shy."

The case has now been inherited by Magistrate Carol Peralta after Jacquline Padovani Grima was recently promoted to the bench.

During this morning's sitting, Police Superintendent Paul Vassallo from the Economic Crimes Unit informed the court that all foreign witnesses had been exhausted through rogatory letters, and now Spiteri is asking for further rogatory letters to cross-examine the plaintiff.

As Vassallo argued about the time being wasted through endless rogatory letters, with Bricusse now living in the United States, Spiteri argued that Bricusse is living in Monte Carlo.

Magistrate Peralta ruled that should Bricusse not accept to come to Malta to be cross examined by Spiteri, who is leading his own defence, he must be invited to be cross-examined via video conferencing from Montecarlo or London.

In May 2005, Bricusse had told Magistrate Padovani Grima that a a mere week before taking the stand, Patrick Spiteri had phoned his lawyer to offer him USD3,000 in a bid to drop a court action against him.

Bricusse, who is married to Maltese  explained that Spiteri was recommended to him by his lawyer in France, adding that he was planning to buy a property in Malta for his sick mother-in-law, but he and his wife had since changed their mind.

Bricusse told the court that Patrick Spiteri, as his lawyer since 1996, had advised him to invest the money he had in Maltese banks, in Malta government bonds telling him that he "would earn better interest and not have to pay tax," and that he decided to take the advice.

He told the court how he had given his power of attorney to Patrick Spiteri who in turn promised to invest the money. Bricusse gave Spiteri £150,000, but it transpired that none of the money had been invested. 

"A cheque of Lm19,000 was once sent by Spiteri to invest in bonds, but the cheque bounced, and it now appears that none of my money was invested," Bricusse claimed. He presented several documents, amongst them four indicating that an investment was made, but which, he said, were false.

The witness said that after asking Spiteri what had happened to his money over several years and not getting a satisfactory reply, he had contacted the Malta Stock Exchange which in turn, referred him to Globe Investments.

Bricusse said that Spiteri told him one time that he was waiting for "instructions from the Office of the Prime Minister which were to soon be relayed to the Finance Minister so that the funds could be released without any tax paid."

Bricusse told the court that he believed Spiteri "was laughing in his face" about the money, adding that as he repeatedly attempted to get information about his money, he kept contacting Spiteri's office, and was he was told that he was abroad, and another time, he was told that Spiteri was in prison. 

A flamboyant rising star in the legal profession up until a few years ago, Patrick Spiteri has been at the centre of several court actions in recent years.

His flashy cars and large boats attracted attention, but so did later his investment advice and property deals. He was also an advisor to Prime Minister Alfred Sant's Labour government in 1997 when it introduced CET to replace VAT.

Spiteri is appealing various convictions on misappropriation and falsification charges.