Rita Schembri defamation case: Request for freezing of assets withdrawn

The Attorney General has withdrawn a request for the freezing of the assets of  Joe Borg, who is pleading not guilty to attempting to blackmail Rita Schembri, the head of the government’s internal audit bureau (IAID). The request for Mr Borg's assets to be frozen was made yesterday and Magistrate Anthony Vella said he could not understand why the request was being made in a case over defamation. He said he would give his decision later. Mr Borg is accused of having attempted to blackmail Ms Schembri, through an e-mail where he allegedly accused her of breaching a lease agreement. Ms Schembri is at the centre of an investigation which she herself requested over allegations that she breached a code of ethics.