As reported by FinTelegram, the Maltese courts ordered Maltese lawyer Pio Valletta to refund his former client, Elnara Shorazova, €300,000. Pio Valletta was holding €2.4 million on behalf of Shorazova and her late husband. He withdrew €200,000 without their consent and followed that with another withdrawal of €700,000. A total of €900,000 was taken away from Shorazova and her late husband.
Fintelegram can reveal that the transactions took place via Bank of Valletta, a bank partly owned by the Government of Malta. Fintelegram is also publishing proof of the transaction whereby Pio Valletta withdrew €700,000.
Pio Valletta tried to justify these withdrawals as professional fees. When challenged in court, Pio Valletta did not present any invoices or agreements to justify that €900,000 were professional fees. It is not known whether Valletta paid the relevant taxes on these amounts. Questions sent to Pio Valletta by Fintelegram were previously not answered. However, following the Maltese courts’ judgment, Valletta informed that he is currently discussing on a without prejudice basis the possibility of a settlement instead of filing an appeal from the judgment.
Questions sent to the Malta Chamber of Advocates and the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) have so far remained unanswered. The FIAU has remained silent despite having a Maltese lawyer and a Maltese bank involved in having Shorazova suffer such an injustice.
According to Offshore Leaks, Pio Valletta is involved as a shareholder, director, or company secretary in a raft of companies. Vertical International Investments Holding, owned by Jacob Agam, also uses Pio Valletta’s services.
