Pilatus inquiry said Egrant case not closed, court hears

A magisterial inquiry into the operations of the now-shuttered Pilatus Bank concluded that the case concerning the secret company Egrant was not “closed”, a court heard on Monday.

“That was last year and police are still to arraign Pilatus Bank officials,” said lawyer Jason Azzopardi when making arguments against a request filed by former prime minister Joseph Muscat and his wife Michelle to be admitted as “interested parties” in perjury proceedings against former FIAU manager Jonathan Ferris.

The Muscat couple filed that application in November 2020, even before criminal charges had been issued. Their request remained pending until the court heard submissions by the parties’ lawyers.

They lost courtroom rights granted to them by magistrate Joseph Mifsud who then abstained, leading the second magistrate to revoke the decision.

The Egrant inquiry was triggered by a report filed by Muscat following media “allegations” about the secret company belonging to his wife and about the “large sums of money” involved, explained Muscat’s lawyer Pawlu Lia.

Yet, after months of investigations by then-magistrate Aaron Bugeja, the inquiry concluded in July 2018 that Muscat had nothing to do...