Man charged with forgery admits to role in VRT scam

A young man has been released on bail pending sentencing, after admitting to involvement in a VRT scam

The police were informed after a car which had passed the VRT test was later found not to be roadworthy
The police were informed after a car which had passed the VRT test was later found not to be roadworthy

A young man from Zejtun is on bail pending sentencing, after admitting to involvement in a VRT scam.

The accused, whose name is not being published by court order due to ongoing police investigations, appeared before magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo, accused of having accepting bribes, forgery of a private writing and making a false declaration in a public document in relation to the issue of a VRT certificate.

Inspector Sergio Pisani explained how the accused’s role in the scam was to ensure that certain, pre-identified vehicles were not driven into the test lane. The court was told that the accused did not have a password that was necessary for access to the VRT computer system.

The police were informed after a car which had passed the VRT test was later found not to be roadworthy. When retested the vehicle in question had failed the general conditions and various other VRT conditions, the prosecution explained.

After taking note of the accused's guilty plea, the court put off the case for sentencing.

The prosecution did not object to the defence's request for bail which was granted against a personal guarantee of €10,000. The accused was also ordered to sign a bail book once a week.

Lawyers Marion Camilleri, Amadeus Cachia and Yanica Vidal were defence counsel.