A businessman on trial for the murder of the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has spoken about the charges for the first time in court since his arrest seven years ago, telling the jury he was framed by police and had nothing to do with the killing. During four days of questioning by defence and the prosecution lawyers, Yorgen Fenech, 44, accused the most senior adviser to Malta’s prime minister of giving the go-ahead for the murder. Fenech’s defence lawyers have repeatedly sought to identify Keith Schembri, Malta’s most powerful unelected official in the years leading up to the killing in October 2017, as the mastermind and instigator.
Fenech repeated those claims as he began giving testimony on Friday after unexpectedly waiving his right under Maltese law to refuse to give evidence at his own trial. Fenech claimed that Schembri, who was chief of staff to the then prime minister Joseph Muscat, repeatedly leaked sensitive details to him, including advance warnings of raids and arrests. During a court session on Saturday, the judge asked Fenech: “Do you know who the real mastermind is?” Fenech replied: “Keith Schembri.” Police have told the jury that Schembri was never a suspect.
He was called as a witness during the trial and has denied any involvement in the murder. The prosecution’s case rests on the testimony of the self-confessed middleman Melvin Theuma, a taxi driver who alleges Fenech gave him €150,000 (£128,000) to hire the three men convicted of planting the fatal car bomb. In his testimony, Fenech spoke of his drug addiction and his close ties to senior police leaders and politicians, including WhatsApp messages he shared with Schembri and Muscat.
He began his testimony by describing a close friendship with Schembri. He said they had played football as children and reconnected as adults. Fenech said he had come to rely on Schembri, a successful businessman with interests in printing and packaging, and spoke to him most days.
Fenech claimed the idea of killing Caruana Galizia was raised during a barbecue at his family ranch. She had written about Schembri having a brain tumour before he had told his family about his condition. We had to tell him to calm down … It wasn’t the first time he spoke about it, he was almost fixated with Daphne … He kept a file with all her articles.” Fenech claimed Theuma, who also attended the barbecue, wound Schembri up further, saying of Caruana Galizia: “She’ll reap what she sows.” “Then I was in the kitchen and Melvin came up to me and said ‘we can easily get rid of her’,” Fenech said.
I went outside for a smoke and Melvin and Keith continued chatting.” Fenech claimed Theuma raised the subject again two weeks later. As soon as I got into the car, he told me that he had spoken to some people who told him there was already an active plan to murder Daphne Caruana Galizia. At first I wasn’t going to tell Keith, but it kept playing in my mind and then I decided to tell him.
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