A US judge who presided over the sanctions case involving infamous Pilatus Bank owner Ali Sadr Hasheminejad is demanding that sealed filings in the case be made available to the public.

According to documents published by financial blogger Kenneth Rijock, the documents could be made public in the coming weeks with meetings on the issue scheduled for end-October and beginning November.

In July 2020, the US government dropped its case against Ali Sadr, who was convicted of violating US sanctions against Iran earlier this year.

Hasheminejad was found guilty of bypassing US sanctions on Iran by using a complex web of companies to funnel $115 million from a Venezuelan construction project to his father, major Iranian businessman Mohammad Sadr Hashemi.

The case was dropped over the likelihood of continued litigation over the suppression of evidence that arose after his trial. Several documents were sealed in the case, with Rijock claiming that Ali Sadr might have turned informant in a case that could involve Maltese officials.

Publication of the documents could put the issue to bed.

In Malta, Ali Sadr is known as infamous Pilatus Bank owner with links to high-profile figures under former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s administration, with links to magisterial inquiries involving Muscat’s disgraced right-hand man Keith Schembri.

Assassinated journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia wrote extensively on the issue. Her claims that the mysterious Panama company Egrant was owned by Michelle Muscat and documents held at the bank would prove it were dismissed by an inquiry.

Rijock has gained some notoriety in Malta over sensational claims involving former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and current Prime Minister Robert Abela.

What do you think of this latest development?