Payments Diverted To Personal Accounts

Police investigations kicked off after Raketech’s head of accounts filed a report on 9 July 2019, claiming that payments from Panda Media, originating from Video Slots, were not being deposited into the company’s client account.

It was later discovered that the payment details had been altered and redirected to a Bank of Valletta account and a Revolut account — both belonging to Borg. The Revolut account was linked to a virtual Mastercard and Visa card.

Raketech had already reported Borg to the police in February 2019, in connection with a separate case involving fraud and misappropriation.

When investigators obtained Borg’s Revolut statements, they found that deposits from Video Slots totalled €13,164.27. The funds were typically withdrawn on the same or the following day.

Arrest And Police Interrogation

Borg was arrested on 3 August 2019 while signing his bail book in Żebbuġ.

In his police statement, he admitted to being aware of some transactions but denied knowledge of others. When officers asked him to open his Revolut app, they initially couldn’t find the Video Slots transactions, only for them to appear after a manual search revealed they had been hidden.

Borg insisted he hadn’t withdrawn the funds and hadn’t reported the suspicious activity to either the police or Revolut.

Police Inspector Joseph Xerri, who had already investigated Borg in another case filed by Raketech, testified that Video Slots had unknowingly deposited more than €13,000 into Borg’s personal account.

Internal Company Checks

Raketech representatives also took the stand, explaining that Borg’s last working day was 16 January 2019.

About a month later, during a debtors’ meeting, the company’s finance team began checking which clients hadn’t been paid. That’s when they discovered a Skrill account linked to an unknown email address, one that management had no knowledge of or access to.

After finally accessing the account, they found that $190,000 had been transferred into it before being moved into a local HSBC account.

Further checks confirmed that while most client bank details were correct, Video Slots’ details had been changed to point to Borg’s BOV and Revolut accounts instead.

The company began tightening its security measures soon after, including changing passwords once it became clear that someone had tampered with account information.

Guilty Verdict

The court ruled that there was enough circumstantial evidence to find Borg guilty of obtaining money by false pretences.

It noted that Borg’s role at Raketech, combined with his access to Excel files containing passwords and the company’s VPN system, clearly placed him in a position to alter payment details.

While there was no direct evidence proving that he personally changed the details, the court concluded that all signs pointed to him.

Borg was found guilty of obtaining €13,164.27 by false pretences and money laundering, as well as changing bank details, making unauthorised use of passwords, and breaching both a freezing order and bail conditions.

The Sentence

Magistrate Gabriella Vella sentenced Borg to four years in prison.

She also ordered that his €10,000 deposit and €75,000 personal guarantee be forfeited in favour of the government.

Borg was ordered to forfeit €13,164.27, or pay the equivalent if the funds couldn’t be found in his assets, and to repay Video Slots the same amount within one year.

The court further imposed a permanent ban on Borg from accessing public funding, including tenders, grants, and concessions, and from practising commercial activities. He was also banned from running for elected or public office for five years, starting after his prison sentence ends.

In addition, Borg was ordered to pay €545.74 in court expenses.

Raketech Group Ltd. was represented by Maurice Meli and Stefano Filletti.

The case was prosecuted by Inspectors Joseph Xerri and Doriette Cuscheri.