Restaurant owner Gaetano Falzon, 64 from Santa Venera, today was acquitted of all charges related to the theft of €45,600 worth of electricity due the case having become time-barred. 

Although the court concurred that it was presented with more than enough evidence to find Mr Falzon guilty, the police filed charges in 2013, eight years after a surprise inspection by Enemalta at his restaurant, Chez Gaetano had unveiled that he had a tampered electricity meter.

The alleged theft went on from July 2000 until July 2005. Enemalta employees had found that the meter in the Bugibba restaurant’s basement had been clearly tampered with as the protective seals had been broken. He was also found to have been supplying his restaurant with electricity from an unmetered electricity cable.

A court-appointed expert confirmed the finding of an unmetered cable saying that Mr Falzon was being helped by an Enemalta employee.

An Enemalta official also testified that the equivalent amount of money allegedly stolen was calculated using the consumption discrepancy during the aforementioned five-year period, as well as on the following months when the owner stopped the illicit practice.

Since the charges carried a maximum sentence of three years in prison, the defence argued that the case should have become time-barred after five years. This argument was upheld by Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera who, even though noting that the charges had been proven by the prosecution, the charge did not carry a jail term of more than four years and, as such, there was a five-year limit to arraign Mr Falzon.

As such, the court had to abstain from considering the merits of the case and the case was dismissed.