Minister unconvinced by Fenech Adami’s denial on CapitalOne case

During this afternoon’s Parliamentary debate over the budgetary allocation for the Home Affairs ministry, shadow minister for home affairs Beppe Fenech Adami categorically denied ever having interfered in Police investigations dealing with alleged money laundering by a client of a fiduciary company he was a director of in 2013.

Fenech Adami was referring to a story published by MaltaToday which showed that in the weeks running up to the last general election, the Police had postponed investigations into a case of money laundering by CapitalOne Investment Group, when Beppe Fenech Adami’s name came up in the investigation.

“I deny any allegations made against me. In my political and professional career, I have never interfered in any investigation being carried out by the Police or interfered in the work of the Attorney General.”

No suggestions have been made in MaltaToday's report that Fenech Adami interfered, since at the time of the investigation he was a parliamentary assistant responsible for home affairs inside prime minister Lawrence Gonzi's office.

In response, Home Affairs minister Carmelo Abela said that he did not believe Fenech Adami and added that while he would not go into the merits of the case, he said that he was not convinced that the story was false. “I am not convinced by what he has stated here today, that it was a coincidence that an investigation was stopped when his name cropped up shortly before the last election. Maybe when he is accuses the government of interference in the Police he is simply speaking from personal experience,” he said.

An independent inquiry is ongoing into the CapitalOne investigation, headed by three retired judges.