Enemalta’s former chief projects officer, Raymond Ferris, allegedly asked for €40,000 to help award the Enemalta’s petroleum division to PowerPlan, the company owned by presidential pardon recipient George Farrugia, a court was told today.

Mr Farrugia also gave Mr Ferris a number of silver gifts, which Mr Ferris admitted to exchanging for an antique silver tray.

Mr Ferris, a 51-year-old from Sliema, is being accused of trading in influence, bribery and fraud on the basis of Mr Farrugia’s testimony. He is pleading not guilty to all charges, and had been granted bail when he was arraigned last week.

Prosecuting inspector Angelo Gafà took the witness stand today, recounting how police investigations into revelations of alleged corruption in oil procurement led them to Mr Farrugia, who was subsequently granted a pardon to turn state’s evidence.

Mr Farrugia revealed that PowerPlan made a bid for Enemalta’s petroleum division together with Greek company Mamidakis, which was one of four bids made when a call for tenders was made in 2008. The adjudication board selected BP Energy as the preferred bidder, and nearly five years later, the process is still ongoing.

But after a call for expressions of interest was made in 2007, Mr Farrugia said that he approached Mr Ferris, who was responsible for the privatisation process within Enemalta. Mr Ferris, he said, asked for €40,000 to influence the adjudication board, which would only be paid if the tender is awarded.

However, shortly before Christmas of that year, Mr Farrugia said that Mr Ferris asked for four silver gifts which he would pass on to members of the adjudication process. Mr Farrugia said that he remembered buying four gifts, worth approximately €2,000 each, but could not produce receipts.

Mr Ferris was subsequently questioned by Insp. Gafà, and he initially denied receiving any silver gifts, prompting the inspector to search his home. But Mr Ferris subsequently said that he received three gifts, which he part exchanged for an antique silver tray at Azzopardi Jewellers in Floriana. The three gifts were valued at €2,700, and the tray was worth around €3,000 – jeweller Joseph Azzopardi could not produce any records to confirm this.

In his statement to the police, Mr Ferris said that he met Mr Farrugia at the latter’s request, and that Mr Farrugia provided three wrapped gifts and told him to pass them on to members of the adjudication board.

Mr Ferris told the police that he decided to keep the gifts himself, and to exchange them after the adjudication board made its decision. He denied asking for €40,000 or soliciting gifts.

Defence lawyer Kenneth Grima questioned the apparent discrepancy between Mr Ferris and Mr Farrugia’s testimony on the gifts, questioning how four gifts worth a total of around €8,000 would be exchanged for less than €3,000, and pointed out that Mr Farrugia’s pardon was conditional on his being truthful.

Insp. Gafà said that when Mr Farrugia and Mr Ferris were confronted at police HQ, Mr Farrugia said that he could not confirm whether he might have passed on just three gifts, but was not certain.

Dr Grima, who is representing Mr Ferris along with lawyer Veronique Dalli, pressed Mr Gafà further on this, prompting the inspector to point out that Mr Ferris’ own testimony was inconsistent, since he originally claimed not to have received anything.

Supt Paul Vassallo, who had visited Mr Azzopardi’s jewellery, said that when he asked Mr Azzopardi for records of the transaction at the heart of the case, he was told that it was futile as he did not keep such records.

Dr Grima questioned this failure in bookkeeping, and Supt Vassallo replied that he also agreed that records should have been kept, since the police could not confirm whether the three gifts Mr Ferris traded were the same gift Mr Farrugia gave to him. He noted that Mr Azzopardi described Mr Ferris as a regular customer.