The compilation of evidence against 25-year-old Tammy Caruana continued on Thursday, with several alleged victims testifying about how they were deceived into revealing banking details in an alleged phishing scheme.
Caruana is pleading not guilty to charges that she posed as a bank official and tricked individuals into disclosing sensitive financial information, which was then used to transfer funds through cryptocurrency channels.
One victim told the court she was targeted on 19 September 2025 while working at court. She received a notification warning of a "new desktop login" on her account and clicked a link that led to what appeared to be Bank of Valletta's login page. Shortly afterwards, she received a call from a Maltese-speaking woman, apparently from BOV's official number, who claimed fraudulent transactions amounting to €4,950 had been initiated. Trusting the caller, the victim followed instructions before later discovering the money had been transferred to a German bank account opened in her name. She never recovered the funds.
Another witness testified that in November 2024 he received a call from a woman warning of unauthorised card activity. After being asked for his six-digit BOV passcode and directed to a seemingly legitimate banking portal, €470 was stolen from his account. He said the caller gained his trust by using his full name and advising him not to disclose further banking details "for security reasons".
A third victim recounted receiving a call from a woman identifying herself as "Rachel" from BOV, who claimed someone had attempted to access her account from Siġġiewi. Following instructions sent via a link, the victim unknowingly enabled three withdrawals totalling €4,850. She later contacted the bank and learned she had been scammed. Describing the caller as polite and convincing, she said the stolen money represented her personal savings accumulated over 20 years. The bank eventually refunded €2,425.
The prosecution is being led by Inspector Claire Vella Borg and Attorney General lawyers Marica Ciantar and Mauro Abela. Defence counsel include Roberto Spiteri, Alfred Abela, Rene Darmanin and Franco Galea.