A Paceville restaurant part-owned by Mohammed Elmushraty, the Libyan boxer charged with money laundering, tax evasion and participation in organised crime, has been evicted from the premises for breaching its lease conditions.

This emerged from a decision by the Rent Regulation Board last week, against Elmushraty’s Tunisian-born business partner. The defendant’s name cannot be published due to a court order in the criminal proceedings against Elmushraty, in which the man had testified to having been pressured to perjure himself in those criminal proceedings by associates of the Libyan.

The man had told the court that he had lived in Malta for 25 years, working as a travel agent before taking over a Paceville restaurant as part of the Hugos group. Elmushraty was his business partner in the restaurant, with both men owning a 50% stake in the business.

The outlet’s commercial licence had been issued in the man’s name and so had the 5 year lease, he had said, also testifying to having written to the landlord in 2020 in a bid to remove himself as a party to the lease agreement - something he said he was unable to do because of a clause in the contract.

In the judgement handed down by Magistrate Joseph Gatt, the RRB noted that the landlord had requested the dissolution of the lease due to a breach of contract in June 2022- the premises had been leased as a restaurant but was being used as a nightclub, causing a nuisance to the neighbours. The defendant had also fallen behind on rent and utilities payments, said the landlord, who claimed to be owed €127,148.34 at the time.

The case had originally been assigned to another magistrate, who was later promoted to judge, before being assigned to Magistrate Gatt in March this year.

When the case resumed before the new magistrate on July 7, the defendant failed to appear and did not file a defence. The Board noted that the proceedings before the RRB were special summary proceedings, which required certain formalities to be followed. “The defendant’s failure to show up and inform the Board that he had a defence was fatal to the action and bound the Board with the decision that must be given…”

“In circumstances like these it is good to remind that he who sleeps on the rights afforded to him by law, cannot then find protection from it,” observed the Board,  directing that the tenant be evicted within 21 days, and ordering the case to continue with regards to the claimed arrears.