A former official of the Foundation for Tomorrow's Schools (FTS), Edward Caruana, who faced criminal charges of bribery and corruption, has been acquitted.

Caruana, who was a former canvasser for Education Minister Evarist Bartolo, was facing charges of bribery dating back to 2016. He was charged in December 2017, following allegations of corruption by then FTS CEO Philip Rizzo.

It was alleged by Gozitan contractor Giovann Vella, that he demanded payment from suppliers of the FTS as bribes.

Handing down the judgement on Monday, Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech said that despite the wisdom of the prosecution and the professional manner it was handled, in light of the evidence put forward, no guilt can be found in the defendant.

It could not be proven that Caruana was a public official or employee at the time of the alleged wrongdoing. His contract of service dated October 2013 contained no indication that he was a public official. The court also noted that at the time FTS were the ones posting job vacancies, not the public service. Also, it was FTS who paid his relative salary, not the public service.

Caruana moved to FTS after he left his previous employment with Resource Support and Services Limited, a private company. There was no sufficient evidence that was put forward that revealed that he reassumed the role of a public official.

The court found that, as the alleged wrongdoing was attributed to Caruana as a public official, and since that requisite was not proved sufficiently, it did not delve further into the issue, and acquitted Caruana. The court also deemed Vella's testimony to be unreliable.

The magistrate ordered the commissioner of police to investigate whether the case involved any criminal wrongdoing by individuals who issued false invoices.

The magistrate also ordered to revoke the freezing order imposed against Caruana.

Inspector Rennie Stivala prosecuted the case and lawyers Stefano Filletti and Stephen Tonna Lowell were the defence counsel.