By Amphora Media

• Denise Agius, the wife of Robert Agius, received €207,000 from We Media as “consultancy fees” and “wages”, as well as a €24,000 “loan advance”.
• Robert Agius received a €4,975 payment from We Media, and a suspected further €6,000 from a company linked to We Media’s owner.
• Evidence in police possession suggests Jamie Vella funnelled payments to the partner of a convicted drug trafficker with the aid of We Media.
• We Media owner Edmond Mugliette (also appearing as Mugliett) is subject to an investigation order on “reasonable suspicion” of money laundering and handling the proceeds of crime. The probe is ongoing.

The owner of a significant production company, Edmond Mugliett, has been investigated for links with a suspected organised crime group convicted of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder. Among others, the company has produced popular shows like Xarabank and Istrina.

Transaction records show that production company We Media sent €207,000 to Denise Agius, the wife of Robert Agius, one of the Maksar brothers, in 63 separate transfers between November 2016 and September 2021.

The payments were listed for “consultancy fees”, “wages”, as well as a €24,000 “loan advance”. By August 2019, Agius was receiving a monthly net salary of €4,000.

The trial and eventual conviction of Robert Agius, Adrian Agius and Jamie Vella have shone a light on the family business operations, which authorities suspect of having ties to international organised crime groups. 

Public documents analysed by Amphora Media, OCCRP, and The Times of Malta reveal Denise’s property deals and private loans, all while holding jobs ranging from hairdresser in Rabat to consultant at We Media.

Robert Agius also received a €4,975 payment from We Media Ltd. for “camera equipment”. Information in the possession of investigators shows that Agius received an additional €6,000 for the same reason from another company where Mugliette is a nominal shareholder. 

The transactions were found mixed among legitimate business transactions by We Media.

Encrypted communication in the possession of investigators suggests that Jamie Vella, another suspected gang member, funnelled payments to a convicted drug trafficker with the aid of We Media.  

Vella communicated with drug trafficker Ronnie Galea about money on several instances in 2020. As proof of payment, Vella sent Galea three bank transfer confirmation documents from We Media’s Bank of Valletta account. The transfer confirmation documents sent by Vella were printed by “Edmond Mugliette”. 

Asked about the transactions, BOV’s representative said, “the Bank is unable to comment publicly on client matters due to data protection regulations. We reaffirm that we have in place very strong due diligence and credit governance processes that meet regulatory requirements and expectations.”

Neither Vella’s lawyer nor Mugliette replied to reporters’ questions. 

Transaction records show that We Media transferred funds to Edina Szegvari. Galea’s Facebook posts indicate that he’s in a romantic relationship with a woman by that name. 

Investigation documents list several recipients of funds from Denise and Robert: one of them is Edina Szegvari, who received €1,000 from each of them, in 2014 and 2015 respectively. Jamie Vella and Adrian Agius are also listed among recipients of funds from Denise Agius.

Denise Agius, Szegvari and Galea did not respond to reporters’ questions.

Robert Agius, his brother Adrian, and Vella have long been suspected of leading the Maltese operations of an international criminal network suspected of drugs and contraband trafficking, weapons smuggling, and other crimes.

Robert Agius and Jamie Vella have been found guilty of complicity in the car-bomb assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Adrian Agius has been found guilty of the murder of lawyer Carmel Chircop in a case which counted Vella and hitman George Degiorgio as accomplices. Neither of the brothers’ lawyers responded to reporters’ questions.

Owner under investigation

We Media’s owner, Edmond Mugliette, is the subject of multiple intelligence reports focusing on suspect financial transactions and, according to one July 2022 report, “participation in an organised criminal group.”

In March 2022, a court authorised an investigation order sought by the Attorney General compelling all local banks and financial institutions to hand over any financial information they have on Mugliette, We Media, and five other companies linked to him. 

The order was approved due to a “reasonable suspicion” that Mugliette was involved in money laundering and handling the proceeds of crime. 

Sources familiar with the investigation told Times of Malta that the probe is “ongoing” and the police have already questioned Mugliette.

Another intelligence report details how Mugliette was caught with €38,000 in undeclared cash while travelling from Malta to Türkiye in December 2021. The cash stash, according to the report, included €30,000 worth of €500 notes.

Eurozone banks ceased issuing €500 notes in 2019, amid concerns that the notes facilitated the transportation of large amounts of cash by criminals. 

The police and customs spokespersons did not reply to reporters’ questions.

A January 2022 intelligence report indicates that Mugliette was helping Denise Agius recover money owed to her husband by James Zammit, whose company provided a €1.3 million loan to Ages Investment, a company owned by Denise.

According to the report, Robert Agius used to give Zammit, a car dealer, vehicles to sell on his behalf, thereby preventing his name from appearing on any paperwork. Denise Agius was seeking to close the business relationship. 

Mugliette met with Zammit to terminate the “business relationship” so that funds that belonged to Robert Agius are transferred into Denise’s account, the report states. In response, James Zammit said the meeting was about a loan and not about car business.

“I categorically deny any involvement – not only to the fact that I never did any illicit trade with the said Maksar gang, but also with anyone,” Zammit said in response to reporters’ questions, adding, “our companies have gone public in 2024, entailing a very meticulous 14-month DD [due diligence] exercise by FIAU, MFSA, Malta Stock Exchange and other bodies, which as you surely know work in tandem with the police prior to any such public call.”