Former Sliema Mayor Nicholas Dimech was cleared of bribery and threats against a public officer, after the Court of Appeal said it was not morally convinced of his guilt on the basis of the evidence produced.
The Court of Appeal had ordered the case to be heard anew after a Magistrates’ Court had handed down a one-year jail term to the former mayor.
The case revolved around allegations made by the Sliema Council’s former contracts manager Stephen Buhagiar who claimed that the former mayor had demanded a bribe in return for a contract of services clinched with the council.
The contract was assigned for a trial period of six months in September 2009 on condition that it could be terminated if the councilors were not pleased with the services offered by Mr Buhagiar.
This being the case, the council had terminated the contract by a vote of eight to one in March 2010, prompting Mr Buhagiar to file a police report claiming that he had been deprived of his job because he had not handed over the bribe to the then-mayor.
Delving into the evidence put forward, presiding magistrate Joseph Mifsud pointed out that when assigned the case, both parties had done away with the re-hearing of…
