A magistrate presiding money laundering proceedings against Yorgen Fenech has granted him bail against a €100,000 total bail bond - however Fenech will remain in jail because of the charges he is facing separately for allegedly masterminding the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Taking into account the clean criminal record and the accused’s cooperation with the authorities, the small amount alleged to have been laundered and which deals with a restricted period of time in the charges, Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech granted bail against a deposit of €30,000 and a personal guarantee of €70,000.

Fenech was ordered not to travel abroad or hide from the police, deposit his ID card, not approach prosecution witnesses or commit another crime whilst on bail, as well as sign a bail book twice daily and observe a curfew.

The prosecution had failed to substantiate its fear of Fenech absconding, said the magistrate pointing out that the assets of the accused in Malta are already frozen and no request to freeze assets abroad was made.

Several company officers from Tumas Group also testified this afternoon before Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech as the compilation of evidence against the Group’s CEO, Yorgen Fenech, continued.

In this case Fenech, who is separately indicted for the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, stands accused of money laundering.

In previous sittings it emerged that Fenech is suspected of having laundered €5000 through his casinos.

The sitting was delayed by some minutes due to the lack of availability of prison guards to escort the accused into the courtroom and provide security. When he eventually was escorted into the courtroom, Fenech was in a chipper mood, backslapping and greeting his family, friends and legal team.

Today’s witnesses: Abigail Fenech, Money Laundering Reporting Officer at Tumas Gaming; Jesmond Galea, acting COO of Tumas Gaming and General Manager of Portomaso Casino; Antoinette Tabone, General Manager at Oracle casino in Qawra; and Dorianne Spiteri, the Cashdesk Manager; all testified about the record keeping and client onboarding procedures in force at the casinos.

Tumas Gaming operates both the Oracle and Portomaso casinos, the court heard. Abigail Fenech was also asked whether there was a connection between Tumas Gaming and Glimmer Ltd – a company owned by Yorgen Fenech and his uncle Ray Fenech. There was none, she said.

The court formally instructed the media not to report on certain details which could impinge on the security of the casinos.

Asked about client onboarding, Galea laid out the process. “We keep records of everything,” he said. The onboarding procedure he described applied only to the land-based casinos, he added, under cross-examination by the defence.

What emerged from the testimony of these witnesses was that detailed records are kept of all transactions and KYC data on the casino’s players. These records do not expire, the court was told. Winnings of over €2000 are to be accompanied by a winnings certificate issued by the cash desk.

Bail submissions

The magistrate also heard submissions on the accused’s latest request for bail.

The prosecution argued that their biggest fear was that the accused could easily abscond if granted bail. “The law mentions fear,” said Azzopardi Alamango. The court invited her to elaborate on this fear, in view of the fact that the amounts and punishment “are what they are.”

The Magistrate pointed out that Fenech had a clean criminal record. “What is leading you to fear escape?” Facing proceedings could be an incentive to abscond, replied the prosecutor. “In the prosecution’s humble opinion, when a person is facing criminal proceedings and has connections abroad, there is a risk of absconding.”

Mercieca quoted the ECHR in Merabishvili vs Georgia, saying “when the only fear is flight, he or she must be released pending trial if it is possible to provide the necessary guarantees.”

Fenech was ready to sign as many times a day as required by the court, said the lawyer.

“We are being charged with laundering €5000. Mr Fenech is capable of guaranteeing this amount.”

The Magistrate asked why the AG was feeling that in this case, which is identical to others, there was a flight risk. Glimmer Ltd COO Patrick Demanuele and Director Anthony Farrugia had been released on bail.

Lawyers Cinzia Azzopardi Alamango and Marthese Grech from the Office of the Attorney General are assisting prosecuting Inspector Brian Camilleri.

The case continues on 6 December at noon.