Maltese courts have no authority to force financial expert Jeremy Harbinson to take the stand in the criminal proceedings linked to the Vitals-Steward hospitals concession, a court ruled on Wednesday.
The court concluded that any obligation to testify, or consequences for avoiding it, falls entirely within the jurisdiction of the Northern Irish courts where he was meant to appear remotely.
Financial expert Jeremy Harbinson is wanted to testify in the criminal proceedings against former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, his ex-chief of staff Keith Schembri.
However, it now seems that Malta cannot hold him in contempt for repeatedly failing to appear and testify.
The court decided that, because Harbinson was meant to give evidence before a Northern Irish court by video link, under a post-Brexit “letter of request” mechanism, only the Northern Irish judiciary can compel his attendance or impose sanctions if he refuses to testify.
The ruling came after prosecutors argued that Harbinson, as a court-appointed expert and the central figure in the years-long investigation into the Vitals-Steward hospitals deal, had a clear duty to take the stand.
They claimed his ongoing refusal could amount to an offence which empowers Maltese courts to order the arrest of a witness and impose substantial fines or even imprisonment for failing to appear.
The court disagreed, emphasising that these penalties apply only in the state where the witness was summoned. Under the legal convention governing cross-border evidence after Brexit, the oath is administered in the host country, and any breach of obligations falls squarely under that country’s national law.
The magistrate ordered the prosecution to determine whether Harbinson had in fact been formally summoned before the Northern Irish courts, and whether any action is pending there in light of his failure to testify. The court noted that Maltese jurisdiction does not extend to compelling or penalising a witness whose testimony is to be taken abroad under an international cooperation framework.
Harbinson’s absence has long overshadowed the proceedings. In October, he began claiming that he was not prepared to travel to Malta because of what he described as “fears for his safety”.
Earlier this week, he was fined €500 by the Criminal Court in a separate procedure after failing to attend that hearing as well. On the day he was scheduled to testify from Northern Ireland, it was instead lawyer Sean Xerri De Caro from the Attorney General’s international relations office who addressed the court.
He presented a February 2025 affidavit Harbinson had filed with UK authorities explaining why he could not testify, together with documentation showing that Harbinson was not present in the United Kingdom and was not expected to return for an extended period.
The British authorities further informed their Maltese counterparts that they had no intention of taking additional steps to secure Harbinson’s appearance and considered the matter closed.
Despite this, prosecutors told the court that they would continue exploring all possible legal avenues to persuade him to testify. The defence countered that the prosecution’s case is built almost entirely upon Harbinson’s expert findings, and that his presence is indispensable. They warned that his conduct could severely prejudice the fairness of the proceedings unless the court took firm action.
The court nevertheless ruled that neither arrest, nor fines, nor any form of sanction under Maltese law can be imposed on Harbinson, given that his testimony was to be taken before a Northern Irish court. She ordered that a copy of the ruling be transmitted to the Northern Irish authorities and granted the Attorney General’s Office three months from the date an English version is issued to take any necessary steps abroad.
The prosecution was led by AG lawyers Francesco Refalo, Rebekah Gatt and Shelby Aquilina.
Appearing for the defendants were: lawyers Vince Galea, Ishmael Psaila, Charlon Gouder and Etienne Borg Ferranti for Joseph Muscat; lawyers Franco Debono and Jonathan Thompson for Jean Carl Farrugia and Kevin Deguara; lawyer Charles Mercieca for Mario Victor Gatt; lawyer André Portelli for David Joseph Meli; lawyers Edward Gatt and Mark Vassallo for Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi; lawyer Stephen Tonna Lowell for Brian Tonna, Karl Cini and Nexia BT; lawyer Chris Cilia for MTrace; lawyer Stefano Filletti for Adrian Hillman and lawyers Shazoo Ghaznavi; Alex Scerri Herrera and Jessica Formosa for Clarence John Conger Thompson, Shaukat Ali and Wasay Bhatti.
Magistrate Lara Lanfranco presided over the sitting.
READ ALSO: Harbinson’s intransigence weakens criminal prosecution in Vitals case