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All those involved in the 2017 murder of anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia have been detained, the Maltese national police chief declared.
Commissioner Angelo Gafa spoke before a court hearing Wednesday night in which two new suspects were prosecuted.
So far, seven men have admitted or been charged with complicity in killing Caruana Galizia. Among them are property and energy magnate Yorgen Fenech, who pleads not guilty to having been the mastermind behind the murder, and a taxi driver who has already confessed to being the intermediary in the alleged paid homicide of one of the most popular journalists. Malta highlights.
“With the evidence we have, we are in a position to say that all the people involved, whether they are intellectual authors or accomplices, are arrested or face charges,” Gafa announced at a press conference.
The comments may cause some controversy, as Fenech has provided evidence to the police accusing leading political figures of having prior knowledge of the plot.
At 11pm in the courts of justice in the Maltese capital, Valletta, Robert Agius and his partner Jamie Vella pleaded not guilty to complicity in the murder of Caruana Galizia. Vella, who tested positive for Covid-19, appeared with a hazardous materials lawsuit in the heavily guarded courtroom. Vella and Robert’s brother, Adrian Agius, were also charged with being involved in a second murder, the 2015 shooting of a lawyer named Carmel Chircop. They pleaded not guilty.
George Degiorgio, who is already facing trial as one of the hitmen suspected of executing the Caruana Galizia murder, was also charged and denied carrying out the Chircop murder.
Raids on the homes and vehicles of brothers Agius and Vella, who were arrested on Tuesday, revealed cash worth € 70,000, firearms, 350g of heroin and two envelopes of cocaine. In one of the residences, the police found 10 cars, which are expected to be confiscated.
Europol, which has been helping since the beginning of the murder investigation, is tasked with extracting data from 25 mobile phones and two laptops seized during the raid.
Fenech was arrested in 2019 while trying to leave Malta aboard his yacht. He is being held pending a decision on whether he will face trial. A taxi driver has obtained a presidential pardon in exchange for his evidence against Fenech. Melvin Theuma, a former friend of the tycoon, now lives in a safe house, under police protection.
The latest developments came after a key witness secured a plea deal, which was approved by the Maltese prime minister and his cabinet on Monday. Three years after first coming forward with crucial evidence in the case, Vincent Muscat obtained a clemency measure in exchange for his testimony.
After pleading guilty to his role in the Caruana Galizia murder, he was immediately sentenced to 15 years, although his prison term could be commuted to allow his release in 2027. Muscat also received a presidential pardon for admitting his role in the Chircop murder. . in exchange for evidence against his alleged accomplices.
Caruana Galizia, a columnist and researcher whose blog on political corruption in Malta earned her the reputation of being a “WikiLeaks unique woman”, was almost as well known in her home country as those she exposed in her scoops. His violent murder, which took place near his home in the town of Bidnija, has engulfed Malta’s ruling Labor party in a political scandal.
The country’s prime minister, Joseph Muscat (no relation to Vincent Muscat), was forced to resign in 2019 following allegations that members of his administration had tried to sabotage the police investigation.
