The charges are all related to money laundering. 

However, nothing ever materialised with the AG yet to file the documents to pursue the criminal charges. 

The detail was revealed after activist group Repubblika submitted several documents in its case to force the AG to pursue the case. 

These documents included European and International Arrest Warrants issued to Interpol, which were sent in 2022. 

Ali Sadr and Rivera are both believed to be currently residing in the USA. Meanwhile, Tasli had even come to Malta on 20th October 2021 and testified in court. Still, no arrest was made. 

The now-infamous Pilatus Bank was made subject to its own inquiry after the European Central Bank shut it down over money laundering allegations. 

The inquiry was concluded in 2020 and late last year, Claude Anne Sant Fournier was charged with money laundering offences in his role as Money Laundering Report Officer (MLRO) and director of the bank, but several other names seemed to have eluded the police.

The bank has faced criticism for the veil of secrecy surrounding politically exposed persons (PEPs).

It has been at the centre of various inquiries so far, including the recent inquiry involving kickbacks on the citizenship-by-investment scheme between Schembri and Nexia BT’s Brian Tonna. 

It also played a crucial part in the infamous Egrant inquiry which found no evidence that the Prime Minister or his wife held any Pilatus accounts as had been alleged by the now-assassinated journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Several top officials held bank accounts at Pilatus, with a company at the heart of a US investigation on dirty money for Venezuelan politicians, Portmann Capital, transferring €120 million through the bank.

A network of over 50 companies and trusts secretly owned by Azerbaijan’s ruling elite also used accounts at the bank, funnelling millions into Europe. The Egrant Inquiry flagged the issue and said it merited further investigation.

What do you think of the AG’s decision to ignore the commissioner’s call?