These students have reported missing belongings while doing their attachment in the operating theatre where they have to completely change their clothes and leave their belongings in changing rooms or specific areas near the changing room. These students were surprised after finishing their attachment to find some of their belongings missing including money and wallets. 

When reporting the incidents to workers in the changing room, the workers helped the students with reporting the incidents. However, they advised students not to leave their belongings in changing rooms but to leave them near the workers’ office, especially since students don’t have lockers to store their items. Students were also advised to keep their wallets and phone on them at all times.

The scene in the changing rooms when the theft was reported to workers shows that it wasn’t the first time such incidents have occurred, and the changing rooms are not the only area where something similar has happened, with a student saying that money was stolen from her wallet last week when she was doing her attachment in the wards. Another student responded by saying that she has been told to never leave money with her belongings in the wards as it always gets stolen.

MMSA statement on the alleged theft

The Third Eye has reached out to MMSA for a response about the alleged theft of student belongings and the following was stated

MMSA strongly condemns the recent alleged incident of theft occurring in Mater Dei Hospital ….

MMSA demanded that greater action needs to be taken in light of these allegations

MMSA would like to call for greater security presence around the hospital, especially in the common area, we believe that all medical students should be provided with a safe and secure place to store their personal belongings whilst on attachments in the hospital without the added stress caused by these alleged incidents

MMSA also didn’t forget the lost belongings of students in these cases, adding

We also urge the relevant authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into this matter with the goal of locating a culprit and returning the alleged stolen personal belongings to their rightful owners

For the full statement click here.

Important note

It’s important to note that everything stated in this article is still allegations and students’ reports with no official statement from the hospital or relevant authorities as of the date of publication.

We have removed all the names and associated information from the messages to protect the right of privacy of the students and have asked for permission to post these texts.

For other MMSA related articles click here.

The post Medical students report stolen belongings while on attachments in hospital appeared first on The Third Eye.

What is Money Laundering (ML)?

It is “the crime of moving money that has been obtained illegally through banks and other businesses to make it seem as if the money has been obtained legally.” Usually, this is done through banks and other businesses.

In Malta, the maximum penalty for money laundering is a fine not exceeding €2,500,000.00 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 18 years or both. With Malta’s recent emphasis on the fight against Money Laundering, we wonder: how have sport organisations been used in the past to commit this illegal act?

Money Laundering on the Field

A recent Europol report stated that organized crimes are using match-fixing to launder large amounts of money. Football is at the centre of this criminal ring. Football accounts f more than 50% of the global betting market which could be an appealing reason why it is being targeted by the organized criminals.

Watch this video for more on ‘match-fixing’ :

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) also published a report in July 2009 titled ‘Money Laundering through the Football Sector”. There are around 265 million registered football players in the world with the highest ranking in Germany followed by the United States and Brazil. The size and diversity of the sport are huge money-generating factors, which attracts criminal activity to achieve financial gain. In 2008 alone, the 5 biggest European leagues generated a total of 7.2 Billion Euros accumulating 52% of the total globally. According to the FATF, football is being infiltrated through these four ways:

1. Ownership of football clubs
2. The transfer market and ownership of players
3. Betting activities and image rights
4. Sponsorship and advertising arrangements.

Fictitious Example 1: Funding Semi-Professional Football Clubs

To better explain the process, let’s use fictitious accounts of a small football club. This fictitious amateur club always seemed to be in deficit. The owner of the club always chose to balance the books at the end of the season through very generous donations by a number of his companies. After further investigation, it was found that these companies had not properly registered their Financial Statements as required by the law. It was also realized that this fictitious owner had been misusing company funds by withdrawing large amounts of money without justification, which is an ML matter.

Fictitious Example 2: Political Corruption

A businessman acquires ownership of a locally based football club. He invites politically affiliated people to matches and gives them VIP treatment. This is done in order to take advantage of their decision-making powers which puts him in a beneficial position and boosts business growth.

Although these cases of money laundering are not given the spotlight to protect the image of innocence attached to football, it is rather important to raise awareness. After all, football belongs to everyone and we must safe-keep the values enrolled within the beautiful game.

Check out more articles from UoM Futsal here!

The post Money laundering in the football industry | UoM Futsal appeared first on The Third Eye.