Nexia BT’s Karl Cini was evasive during cross-examination in court today, barely remembering any details requested on reference letters for Keith Schembri and Malcolm Scerri.
Nexia BT’s Brian Tonna along with his business partner Karl Cini had instituted a libel case against The Malta Independent’s Pierre Portelli, David Lindsay and Stephen Calleja regarding an article titled: “Panama Papers: HSBC investigation expected into alleged fraudulent documents vouching for Keith Schembri and Malcolm Scerri,” and the libel case also includes its online counterpart.
The article read that HSBC Bank Malta was expected to launch an investigation into the use of documents concerning OPM Chief of Staff Keith Schembri and General Manager of Kasco Ltd Malcolm Scerri on a letterhead which was expired.
Testifying today, Karl Cini was being cross examined by lawyer Peter Fenech on behalf of The Malta Independent.
Asked “Do you agree that when the article appeared in the Independent, on May 8 2016, this allegation had already come out in the media a few days before?
“It could be,” he said, “the article refers to another article.” He also said that now he knows it had appeared before, “but I had read your article.”
He did not remember when the request for the reference letters came in, but did say the request was made by Mossack Fonseca. Asked why they required the reference letters, he said. “They asked for the letters in the course of performing their duties.”
At this stage, arguments between Peter Fenech, and Aaron Mifsud Bonnici on behalf of Karl Cini, were flung, with Mifsud Bonnici arguing that this was a fishing expedition.
Asked again why the request was made for the reference letters, Cini said that the question was not relevant. Peter Fenech then said: “we can’t have a witness deciding what is relevant or not.”
Mifsud Bonnici retorted saying that Cini cannot break professional secrecy.
Cini did not remember the day he was asked for the reference letters, or whether the request was made verbally or through written correspondence. He said that if a phone call occurred there would not be a record kept
“I informed the two clients with the request by Mossack Fonseca that reference letters were needed.”
Cini could not remember whether it was him or his clients who contacted the bank’s relationship manager Lawrence Pace to get such a letter.
Peter Fenech asked him to verify this point, to which Cini again said that he could not remember.
“Are you saying that you keep nothing in your file?” – Fenech asked.
The evasive stance led Peter Fenech to say that he is not believing the witness and “he is not credible.” He asked for the court for Lawrence Pace to be brought to testify and to suspend the cross-examination of Cini.
Before suspending the case, Fenech asked one final question. “Who sent the letters to you? “I can’t remember if the bank mailed it or asked us to pick it up. If we had to pick it up it would have been from the head office.”
He does not remember who signed it or whether there was a covering letter with the reference letters.
Aaron Mifsud Bonnici was objecting to certain questions which were asked saying they are irrelevant to the case, while Peter Fenech argued otherwise.
Brian Tonna testimony