Opposition leader expects police investigation in IT clean-up at IAID office

Opposition leader Joseph Muscat has called for a police investigation on reports that crucial emails have been deleted from the computer of Rita Schembri, the director-general of the Internal Audit and Investigations Department (IAID).

MaltaToday has been reliably informed that IT experts have visited the offices of the OPM's Internal Audit and Investigations Department (IAID) to delete emails from the computer of director-general Rita Schembri, ostensibly related to various communications that could include the IAID's anti-fraud office's investigation into the John Dalli case.

The IAID's Afcos unit was involved in the investigation of bribery allegations against former EU commissioner John Dalli that was launched by the EU's anti-fraud office OLAF earlier in May 2012.

On Thursday Schembri absented herself from work on long leave, as the Auditor General started an investigation into a possible breach of ethics revealed by MaltaToday.

Schembri is believed to have provided business advisory services, undeclared to the head of the civil service and in breach of the public service management code, when she used her government office to discuss the acquisition of a 60% stake in the Casinò di Venezia for the company Far East Entertainment.

A whistleblower who unveiled Schembri's role in the casino also said she described lawyer Pio Valletta - formerly a lawyer for the Kazakh multi-millionaire Rakhat Aliyev - as her "representative". This newspaper is now informed that several highly-sensitive investigations spearheaded by the IAID never achieved fruition: amongst them, an investigation into the foreign ministry's issuing of visas, which were aborted.

Schembri's role in the casino bid is now the subject of an investigation by the Auditor General, while the IAID director is out on long leave pending the inquiry.

In a statement from the Department of Information, the government said that anybody with any such information of alleged irregularities, the Opposition included, should report them to the police for investigation. "The government's position is a consistent one: every report or allegation must be investigated by the responsible authorities, the Police included."

"I now expect that it is not only the Auditor General who investigates, but also the Police. It is shocking that crucial emails have been deleted and the Police cannot ignore this report," Joseph Muscat said on Sunday. "Something like this intolerable in a European country."

Schembri's name resurfaced in the news on Saturday when a man she was involved in court litigation with, was denied bail on criminal charges of harassing her.

Magistrate Consuelo Scerri-Herrera remanded in custody Joseph Borg, 75, after he was charged with threatening Schembri by an email on 19 November, saying he would report her to government authorities if she failed to pay monies she owes to third parties, in litigation she has on her sub-leasing of his restaurant to them.

Borg is owed €22,000 by Schembri after the latter was found guilty by a civil court of breaching a lease agreement on a restaurant she rented from Borg. Schembri is also involved in court litigation with another sub-lessee, over who has to pay Borg further monies for a breach of the lease agreement.

Borg pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges instituted by the police on a complaint by Schembri, who was represented in parte civile by Pio Valletta.

Borg did not deny sending an email reporting Schembri to OLAF, the EU's anti-fraud office of whom Schembri is a member of its supervisory committee. Borg, who pleaded not guilty, was denied bail and remanded in custody in Corradino Correctional Facility after prosecuting police inspector Chris Pullicino said he feared Borg would contaminate evidence.