Ryan Schembri business had €2.4 million 'unaccounted for', court told
Some €2.4 million remained “unaccounted for” in the books of a company formerly co-owned by More Supermarkets boss Ryan Schembri, who had taken loans from various creditors, including late hotel tycoon Hugo Chetcuti, court heard on Monday. Details of Schembri’s business dealings emerged in court when a former associate testified in the proceedings wherein the owner of the now-defunct supermarket chain is pleading not guilty to fraud and money laundering estimated to run into tens of millions of euros. Etienne Cassar recalled how he first dealt with Schembri as a client in the late 90s when Cassar was a wholesale supplier of restaurants. Sensing the need of joining up with someone who had a better knowledge of finances, Cassar had suggested Schembri who had the necessary technical know-how. That was how Cassar and Schembri Limited was born in 2002. The company later branched out into transport and the meat industry. Around 2010, when the opportunity cropped to set up a supermarket at Palm Residence in Libya, with the Corinthia Group, Schembri had seized the opportunity, putting in much work and personal sacrifice into the venture, the witness said. The business in Libya,...