Live Blog: Day 9 of Yorgen Fenech’s Trial Into Daphne Caruana Galizia’s Murder

Welcome to our live coverage as the jury trial of Yorgen Fenech over the assassination of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia enters its ninth day.

It’s 9am. We’re at the law courts in Valletta, where proceedings before Madam Justice Edwina Grima are just getting underway. The prosecution is expected to continue presenting its case today, with more witnesses set to testify.

The jury entered the courtroom just moments ago, and proceedings are expected to begin shortly.

Refresh for live updates from court

Police rented an identical Peugeot to the victim’s car to reconstruct the bombing

09:45am- Police Constable Clinton Vella tells the court that investigators rented an identical Peugeot 108 to compare it with Daphne Caruana Galizia’s destroyed vehicle.

He says the comparison enabled forensic officers to distinguish original vehicle components from debris that did not belong to the car, helping them identify material believed to have formed part of the explosive device.

Jurors are then shown photographs documenting the comparative examination. Vella explains that investigators used the identical vehicle to pinpoint where the bomb had been placed. He adds that the spare key from Caruana Galizia’s car was also compared with the spare key of the rented Peugeot, which was disassembled as part of the forensic analysis.

Jury shown photos of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s bomb-ravaged car

09:30am- SOCO Darren Debattista takes the stand to detail how investigators examined the victim’s car which was restroyed in the explosion.

The witness details how the team of officers photographed the wreckage, documented the damage and recovered a number of exhibits, including swabs and fragments of shrapnel, for forensic analysis. He says all of the findings were recorded in a report presented to the court.

He explains that the vehicle was kept in a secure, sealed compound and was only accessed by court-appointed experts. Each time examinations were carried out over the course of three days, the seal was broken, the vehicle examined and then resealed.

Jurors are shown photographs of Caruana Galizia’s Peugeot 108 which clearly sustained extensive damages. Debattista says the damage observed to the driver’s side and a hole beneath the driver’s seat were consistent with the blast having originated from inside the vehicle.

09:40am- The witness explains how investigators concluded the explosion originated from within the vehicle given the immense damage observed during the forensic examination. He says officers also recovered and preserved debris that was not part of the Peugeot itself, including sections of electrical wiring, metal fragments and ball bearings believed to have formed part of the explosive device. Photos depicted to the Court show parts of the journalist’s car interior having been completely displaced.

Debattista says investigators used forensic markers to map the direction of the blast and determine its point of origin. Their analysis pointed to an area beneath the driver’s seat. He adds that damage to the underside of the vehicle and the position of the handbrake, which was upright, were also consistent with an explosive device having detonated from inside the car.

09:53am- Witness testimony complete with no cross-examination required.

Prosecution resumes with scene of crime officers

09:25am- Scene of Crime Officer (SOCO) Patrick Grech follows with a brief testimony before the court, as the prosecution continues presenting evidence from officers involved in processing the Bidnija crime scene.

09:15am- Picking up where proceedings left off yesterday, the prosecution continues calling police and forensic witnesses involved in processing the Bidnija crime scene.

The first witness of the day is Forensic Officer Arthur Borg, who tells the court that he was responsible for handling and cataloguing exhibits recovered from the scene in the immediate aftermath of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination. He says Dutch forensic experts were informed about the evidence collected.

Borg’s testimony is brief, with the court noting that he will return to testify later on specific forensic documents.

What happened yesterday?

Yesterday’s proceedings centred on forensic and eyewitness evidence as the prosecution continued presenting its case. Dutch forensic specialists and a Europol expert walked jurors through the analysis of data extracted from Daphne Caruana Galizia’s phone and cloud accounts, explaining that their work identified several investigative scenarios that warranted further examination.

During cross-examination, the defence focused on references to Keith Schembri and Chris Cardona contained within the Europol report, arguing that they featured in potential investigative scenarios while Yorgen Fenech’s name did not. The expert stressed, however, that the report was intended to generate investigative leads rather than identify suspects.

The court also heard from first responders, police officers and residents who described the immediate aftermath of the car bomb and recalled seeing suspicious vehicles parked near the Bidnija area in the weeks leading up to the assassination. Proceedings adjourned after further testimony from officers involved in the initial stages of the investigation.

The prosecution is being led by lawyers Godwin Cini, Anthony Vella and Danika Vella from the Office of the Attorney General, assisted by Assistant Police Commissioner Keith Arnaud and Inspector Kurt Zahra. Fenech is represented by lawyers Charles Mercieca, Gianluca Caruana Curran and Giannella de Marco, while the Caruana Galizia family is participating in the proceedings as parte civile, represented by lawyers Therese Comodini Cachia and Jason Azzopardi.

We’ll bring you the latest testimony and key developments from inside the courtroom as they happen. Refresh this page for live updates throughout the day.

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Clara Sciberras

Clara is a lawyer, actor, singer and journalist passionate about storytelling. She joined prime-time TV programme Xarabank in 2019 as a producer, beginning her journey in local media. With a focus on social justice, law and politics, she tries to bring curiosity, creativity and a touch of humour to the stories she tells.