Daphne Foundation calls for fresh charges against Yorgen Fenech, Keith Schembri, Konrad Mizzi over Macbridge revelations

The Daphne Foundation is calling for fresh charges to be pressed against Yorgen Fenech, Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi after news broke on Monday that the elusive company Macbridge was linked to a Chinese executive who helped negotiate the Shanghai Electric investment in Enemalta.

"An international consortium of journalists has laid bare the ownership of offshore companies Macbridge International Development and Dow’s Media Co Ltd, confirming what Daphne Caruana Galizia had reported five years ago: that a criminal entanglement of political and illicit business interests that stretches across the world sat at the heart of Joseph Muscat’s government," the foundation said in their statement.

The foundation is further calling for Cheng Chen to be extradited to Malta to face justice.

"We also expect former prime minister Joseph Muscat’s role in the Shanghai Electric Power and Montenegro wind farm deals to be fully investigated by the Maltese authorities."

It added that action must be taken against Accenture - Cheng Chen’s employer and a consultant on the part-sale of Malta’s state energy company to Chinese state-owned enterprise Shanghai Electric Power in 2013.

"Accenture has known about Chen’s implication in corruption and illicit offshore dealings since 2016 and has chosen to retain him, suggesting that his actions are endorsed by his employer."

On Monday, an international investigation by Reuters and Times of Malta found that Chen Cheng used relatives to set up two firms in Hong Kong.

The first of the companies set up by the Chen family, known as Macbridge, planned to pay up to $2 million to Panama firms controlled by Mizzi and Schembri. It was listed as a target client alongside 17 Black, which was revealed to be owned by Yorgen Fenech.

The second Chen company was called Dow’s Media Company, and the investigation revealed how it received €1 million from 17 Black.

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