Under pressure, AG finally takes action against Azzopardi

Attorney General Dr Silvio Camilleri has written to the Malta Maritime Authority to initiate legal proceedings against the owners of Hannibal Fishing Ltd, Charles and Anthony Azzopardi, more than three months after receiving the inquiry report suggesting the company’s involvement in vessel document fraud.
Camilleri informed the MMA that “sufficient evidence exists for criminal charges to be brought under Article 71 of the Merchant Shipping Act and under article 188 of the Criminal Code”. In view of this, the Authority on Monday referred to the Commissioner of Police all documentation and supporting evidence for appropriate action.
The case goes back to April, when Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund photographed an illegal re-flagging exercise carried out in the Grand Harbour, right under the noses of the port authorities.
Re-flagging is a process whereby a vessel changes its identity by supplying false documentation. In this case, there were four vessels involved: two obsolete fishing boats owned by Hannibal Fishing Ltd, and two new boats bought from Turkey by the same company together with French partners.
These four vessels “swapped” identities by exchanging names and switching from Bolivian to Libyan, and then to Maltese flags.
Upon being informed of this incident in early May, Transport Minister Austin Gatt ordered an inquiry which was completed on June 11, and the results forwarded to the AG’s office on June 16. But it took over 13 weeks for any action to be taken.
Significantly, the Attorney General’s letter is dated 26 September – the same day Fishing News International published a story under the headline: “Malta tuna scandal stalls with Attorney General”.
The press release announcing the legal proceedings was issued on Monday: after MaltaToday highlighted both the FNI story, and the fact that the legal process had apparently been stalled.
Azzopardi Fisheries is one of five local tuna ranching firms currently in court with this newspaper over a series of articles documenting various irregularities associated with the industry.

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