Three men who have been accused of stealing about €250,000 from a St Julian’s casino owned by the Eden Leisure Group in Malta, have denied the theft and pleaded not guilty.
Amongst the trio is Viktor Iliev Leondiev (32) who is an operations manager at the casino. The other two persons who have been charged with the theft are Miroslav Nokolaev Minchev (36) and Dobri Enev (27), both deliverymen.
The charges included siphoning off approximately €250,000 from Casino Malta Limited, which is a subsidiary of the Eden Leisure Group as well as aggravated theft in terms of value, person and time. Deliveryman Minchev has also been accused of document forgery regarding the Gaming Act.
According to the police, the investigations began after a report was received from the company officials highlighting unusual winnings in the presence of Minchev and two players. The three accused are residents of Malta and from Bulgaria.
Inspector Joseph Xerri opines the St Julian’s district police have found that the theft occurred between October 2017 to January 2020. Meanwhile, lawyer Joseph Giglio has appealed for the bail of the three men citing the reason that they have cooperated with the police and allowed them to take their travel documents for further investigation.
The prosecution, too, has not objected to the bail. Magistrate Audrey Demicoli has been told the accused were arrested in January and have since then obeyed all conditions for bail. Giglio further added that the accused have been residents in Malta and gainfully employed for many years now. The primary issue is associated with the amount that is being claimed.
Accordingly, the court has granted bail to the three men against a legal promise (personal guarantee) of €8000. A request by the prosecution to freeze order has also been upheld. The three lawyers advocating for the accused are Noel Bianco, Joe Giglio and Roberta Bonello. On the other hand, Lawyer Stephen Tonna Lowell represents Casino Malta Ltd.
