The European Commission's anti-fraud agency Director General Giovanni Kessler and his team is expected to testify Tuesday in the case against Silvio Zammit, who is accused of bribery and trading in influence for changes to the EU's tobacco directives when John Dalli was EU Health Commissioner, The Malta Independent has learnt.
Sources in the police force said that OLAF's Mr Kessler was summoned to testify before the Maltese court by the Attorney General's office, which is prosecuting the case. Initially, the idea was for Mr Kessler and his team to testify via video conferencing, but they will now be testifying in person. Mr Kessler and his team is expected to testify on the Olaf report that was issued by them.
During the last hearing of this court case, which took place a year ago, Mr Dalli had testified and denied ever discussing snus (smokeless tobacco) or money with his former canvasser Silvio Zammit. In testimony in the same case two years ago, one of the witnesses, Gayle Kimberley, had told the court that Mr Zammit had requested €60 million to use his services for the lifting of the EU ban on snus.
Since March of last year, the case was postponed several times and as a result of this, Dr Edward Gatt, one of Zammit's lawyers, argued in court that if those who have been requested to testify several times keep failing to turn up, the case against his client should be closed.
Lawyer Kenneth Grima, who was meant to testify on behalf of tobacco producer Swedish Match, had filed an application stating that he was unable to attend the court sitting since he was abroad. In a press statement issued on the 16 October 2012 the European Commission said that the Swedish Match company had alleged that a Maltese entrepreneur had used his contacts with Mr Dalli to try to gain financial advantages from the company in return for seeking to influence a possible future legislative proposal on tobacco products, in particular on the EU export ban on snus.
Apart from Mr Kessler, other witnesses who were meant to testify in the case, include Johan Gabrielsson, a Swedish lawyer who was employed by snus manufacturer Swedish Match, and Inge del Fosse, secretary-general of the European Smokeless Tobacco Council (ESTOC).
During the same period of time Mr Kessler had sent a letter to the Speaker of the Maltese Parliament claiming that Mr Dalli had sent a message with someone telling him not to come to Malta because he might be arrested. "On 19 June 2014, a source known to me informed me that during a meeting which took place on the same day in Brussels, Mr Dalli asked him to convey to me the message not to go to Malta, because I might get arrested there," Mr Kessler wrote. A few hours later Mr Dalli published the reply he sent to the Speaker, saying that what Mr Kessler is saying is not true and that he wanted to confront him in Malta about the Olaf report.
On Tuesday Mr Kessler will be accompanied by the Director General of the Legal Services in the European Commission Mr Luis Romero Requena and assisting them there will be Dr Tonio Azzopardi.
Lawyers Edward Gatt and Kris Busietta are appearing for Silvio Zammit. Inspector Jonathan Ferris is prosecuting and the case is being heard before Magistrate Anthony Vella.