Heathcliff Farrugia, the former CEO of the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), was found guilty earlier this week, with his conviction maintained by the Court of Criminal Appeal in Malta. Earlier this year, Farrugia was convicted guilty of providing confidential information to Yorgen Fenech, the proprietor of a wealthy casino. After Farrugia’s appeal was denied by Justice Neville Camilleri, the initial three-year suspended sentence was upheld.
Ties Between Farrugia and Fenech Under Scrutiny
Farrugia’s conviction stemmed from a thorough investigation into his relationship with Fenech, owner of Portomaso Casino. The investigation revealed that in September 2019, Farrugia and Fenech discussed a government inquiry into money laundering allegations involving the casino. Fenech, unhappy with the probe, sought Farrugia’s influence to ease the situation. As the head of the MGA, Farrugia had knowledge of a separate investigation into a rival casino, Eden Leisure Group.
To help Fenech, Farrugia promised to delay the release of the Portomaso Casino report until the rival investigation concluded. This misconduct was uncovered after police reviewed 24 pages of text messages exchanged between the two men. Farrugia was questioned by authorities in late 2020, and in October of that year, he resigned from his position at the MGA.
Yorgen Fenech has significantly more serious legal problems than Farrugia, who will soon be sentenced. Fenech was detained in 2019 and charged with planning the 2017 assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. Caruana Galizia had been looking into a dubious government contract that had been given to one of Fenech’s companies, Electroglas, to build a power plant.
Fenech’s trial is still going on even though three individuals have been found guilty of their participation in the assassination. He has denied having anything to do with the killing.
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