Firm linked to Muscat ‘corruption probe’ to be dissolved by regulator
A Maltese company linked to a corruption probe into ex-prime minister Joseph Muscat is set to be forcefully dissolved by the regulator.
Accutor Ltd is set to be struck off by the Malta Business Registry over its years-long failure to file audited accounts and other corporate documents, in breach of Maltese company law.
The company has been given three months to contest the March dissolution notice.
Accutor’s Swiss arm is at the centre of a corruption probe over suspect payments to Muscat.
The Swiss firm is suspected to have been used to filter kickbacks to Muscat in connection with the Vitals/Steward hospitals deal.
A court last year struck down the hospitals’ deal, authored by Muscat’s government, on fraud grounds.
The deal saw the government hand over the running of three public hospitals to Vitals, an unknown company led by a group of investors with no prior healthcare experience.
Accutor Switzerland was used as a conduit by Steward to pay off the Vitals investors, after the American healthcare company took over the running of the hospitals in February 2018.
Accutor’s owner Wasay Bhatti hired Muscat as a company “consultant” shortly after he stepped down as prime minister in January 2020.
The consultancy agreement is suspected to have been used to mask kickbacks to Muscat.
The former prime minister vehemently denies wrongdoing, and is engaged in a legal battle to remove the magistrate leading an inquiry into his conduct.
Times of Malta revealed the existence of the Accutor payments to Muscat in November 2021.
“Company given three months to contest the March dissolution notice
Two months later, Muscat’s home and office were searched by police in connection with the payments.
Muscat insists the consultancy agreement is genuine and the work done for Accutor is all documented.
The magisterial inquiry into the hospitals’ deal has been ongoing for five years.
Prime Minister Robert Abela has slammed the “exaggerated” delays in the inquiry, and also insinuated that the probe could be designed to cause maximum damage to Labour if concluded before the June European Parliament elections.