Live Blog: Day 11 Of Yorgen Fenech’s Trial Over 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 Day 11.

We’re currently at the Law Courts in Valletta, where proceedings before Madam Justice Edwina Grima have just resumed. Today’s sitting will begin with the continuation of court-appointed IT expert Martin Bajada’s cross-examination, as the prosecution continues presenting its evidence.

The jury has now taken its seats, and proceedings are expected to get underway shortly.

Refresh this page for live updates from inside the courtroom.

Jury Probes IT Expert On Keith Schembri Phone

9:53am – Jurors ask Bajada about the process used to clone Daphne Caruana Galizia’s mobile phone. He explains that because the device recovered from the blast site was a “total loss”, investigators obtained an identical handset, inserted the same SIM card, and were able to recover the available data.

Bajada says the only information lost was the final two weeks of WhatsApp messages, as the phone had not completed a backup.

9:57am– The jury asks why the same process was not carried out on Keith Schembri’s mobile phone, which was reported lost, and whether it would have been possible to clone it.

Bajada says it could have been done, but no such request was made. He explains that, in Daphne Caruana Galizia’s case, both the magistrate and himself were present when the SOCO team recovered the phone, allowing decisions to be taken immediately regarding its preservation and examination.

He tells the court that the police, who were leading the investigation, would have had to request the appointment of an IT expert and order the cloning process. If this was not done at the time, it could not simply be revisited later.

9:59am– Jurors ask whether Schembri could still have accessed or changed information stored on the cloud, despite no longer having the physical phone.

Bajada says the 48 hours during which Schembri was in police custody were particularly important, as access to cloud accounts could potentially allow data, including messages, to be deleted.

He adds that, unlike Schembri’s phone, investigators were able to recover the available data from Daphne Caruana Galizia’s device.

10:01am- Martin Bajada has finished giving evidence for now.

The court is taking a short break while waiting for the next witness to arrive.

Did Chris Cardona meet Alfred Degiorgio at a bachelor party? Defence probes photo

09:50am- Bajada reiterates that he cannot confirm whether the two people shown in the photograph are in fact Chris Cardona and Alfred Degiorgio. He tells the court the image was ultimately ruled out during the investigation because investigators were unable to verify the identities of the individuals depicted.

9:45am- The defence questions IT expert Martin Bajada about a bachelor’s party held at Ferdinand’s Bar in Siġġiewi, turning its attention to whether former minister Chris Cardona ever met Alfred Degiorgio.

The court hears that Cardona had previously told police he attended the party, but only for a few minutes. The defence then refers to a photograph it says appears to show Cardona and Degiorgio seated together, asking whether the two men spoke to each other.

Bajada says he cannot confirm the identities of the people in the image, telling the court there is simply a photograph of two individuals seated at a table and one cannot simply determine who the two individuals are. Asked whether the photo was taken before or after Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination, he replies that he does not recall, adding that the relevant testimony regarding the photo can be found in the records of the magisterial inquiry before Judge Neville Camilleri.

The photo is exhibited to the Jury.

The defence reserves the right to resume its cross-examination at a later stage.

09:39am- The defence now diverts its attention onto Daphne Caruana Galizia’s emails, specifically those referring to Keith Schembri and Chris Cardona. IT expert Martin Bajada tells jurors that around 237 emails mention Keith Schembri, while 274 emails contain references to Chris Cardona.

The exchanges between IT expert Martin Bajada and Yorgen Fenech’s defence lawyer have grown increasingly tense, with the defence pressing him repeatedly on the evidence while Bajada pushes back on several lines of questioning.

“Ejja Minn Hemm” – Defence Exhibits Keith Schembri Message Screenshots

09:34am- De Marco tells the court that the defence has a screenshot of a Signal conversation in which a contact saved as “Xlukkajr” writes, “Ejja minn hemm” (“Let’s go”), to which Keith Schembri replies, “Iva ta'” (“Yes!”).

Cross Examination Of IT Expert Martin Bajada Continues

09:20am- Martin Bajada appears increasingly frustrated by the defence’s questions, telling the court: “You’re asking the obvious. I don’t feel confident enough to answer those types of questions.”

Bajada reiterates that he cannot say with complete certainty who a mobile number is registered to. While he says the information available suggests the number is linked to the one allegedly belonging to Johann Cremona, he tells the court he cannot confirm this as fact.

“You should ask the service provider that question,” he tells De Marco.

09:15am- Defence lawyer Giannella De Marco asks Bajada to verify whether one of Kenneth Camilleri’s phone numbers was stored under the alias “Rukkell”. Bajada consults his notes before answering.

The defence focuses on a contact saved as “Rukkell”, asking whether it corresponds to Kenneth Camilleri’s phone number. After checking the details presented in court, Madam Justice Edwina Grima notes that the numbers appear to match. Bajada declines to state this definitively, saying he does not want to make assumptions.

Questioning then shifts to another contact, “Xlukkajr”, which the defence suggests may refer to businessman Johann Cremona. Bajada confirms that, on Keith Schembri’s phone, the contact is saved under that nickname rather than by name.

09:10am- The jury has taken its seats and proceedings are now underway.

Court-appointed IT expert Martin Bajada has returned to the witness stand, where defence lawyers are continuing their cross-examination.

The defence asks about the contents of the two mobile phones seized from Keith Schembri in 2020, rather than the device he allegedly lost.

Bajada tells the court that one handset contained Kenneth Camilleri’s contact details, including both his standard phone number and WhatsApp account. The second device also held multiple entries linked to Camilleri, including his Facebook profile, with the same phone numbers appearing on both phones.

Here’s what happened on Saturday (day 10):

The trial focused on digital evidence, with jurors hearing from FBI expert Richard Fenner and court-appointed IT expert Martin Bajada.

Fenner testified that investigators were confident they had identified the phones used to trigger the bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia. Bajada then explained how digital evidence was recovered after her mobile phone was destroyed in the explosion.

The session concluded with legal arguments over electronic evidence, including the defence’s request to exhibit additional phone extractions and emails, among them material linked to former OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri.

Court-appointed IT expert Martin Bajada is the first witness to take the stand this morning, with the defence set to continue its cross-examination.

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.