A man who used to occupy the post of executive secretary at a Local Council and who was facing charges related to misappropriation of funds was acquitted by the court of Magistrates.
66-year-old Alfonso Anastasi from Tarxien stood charged with misappropriation of funds which amounted to €2,329. Anastasi, who was elected on the PL ticket, was entrusted with this sum of money which was to be used for the council. He also stood charged with theft, aggravated by the amount stolen. The thefts allegedly took place in July 2007.
The court, presided by magistrate Doreen Clarke, heard how the court proceedings started when Paul Chetcuti Caruana, the Mosta mayor of the time, suspected that money was stolen from the Local Council funds. It noted that the council has to handle a certain amount of funds as part of its daily workings, including MTA licenses and parking fees.
The council had a system by which such money collected is put into envelopes and given to the executive secretary of the Local Council. When the first police report was filed, a number of envelopes carrying cheques and cash were found on the accused's desk and safe. The day after, Anastasi allegedly deposited the sum of Lm 17,000 in the APS account which belonged to the Council.
Paul Chetcuti Caruana had testified how after March of 2007, he started receiving letters from local wardens saying that the parking fees deposits were not being deposited. Caruana, who at the time was mayor, had spoken with the accused a number of times on the matter. Anastasi had replied that he will take care of the issue at a later stage as he was busy.
On one occasion, the mayor told Anastasi to let them into his office where they found envelopes with cash and cheques. The mayor decided to file a police report.
An accountant who used to visit the Local Council said that she had noticed that a number of deposits were not made. She had contacted the accused on the matter. Anastasi had explained that the deposits were being made quarterly, something which the accountant did not find a problem with.
In its judgement, the court noted that the money received by the accused was destined for the council's bank account. It was also considered that the deposits, though later than stipulated, were being made.
On the charge of theft, the court said that this is not the case as the money being handed to Anastasi freely as normal work procedure and that no proof was presented to implicate theft. The money which was allegedly stolen was eventually deposited in the Council's account, the court added.
Anastasi was acquitted from all charges.
Assistant Police Commissioner Ian Abdilla led the prosecution. Lawyer Joe Giglio appeared for the accused.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/2niHrfc
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