The magistrate in the compilation of evidence in the case against the three men accused of murdering journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has concluded that there is enough prima facie evidence to issue a bill of indictment.

It is now up to the Attorney General to issue the bill of indictment against the accused. Should this fail to materialise, the compilation of evidence will resume on 1 February 2018.

Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit is presiding over the case.

Vince Muscat, George Degiorgio and his brother Alfred Degiorgio are charged with the brutal murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. The three have pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them.

Police Constable Clayton Zammit was first to take the stand and told the court that the day prior to the bomb, the vehicle was parked at the Trade Fair Grounds while Matthew Caruana Galizia and his mother, Daphne Caruana Galizia, went for a coffee at Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar.

Matthew Caruana Galizia then drove the car down to exiles. CCTV footage was gathered around the areas of Sliema and Bidnija to ascertain whether the vehicle was being followed.

Police Constable Savior Scerri, who examined the CCTV footage, told the court how, after the arrival of FBI agents, he was directed to show them where the telecommunications towers around the area are located

The court previously heard how these antennas were used to ascertain that the phones used - with regards to the explosion - were used out at sea.

Scerri said that on 25 October a boat of interest was found after examining CCTV footage around the Grand Harbour Area. Footage of the boat, known as Maya and registered under George Degiorgio was presented to the court.

On 23 November, Scerri filmed the same boat driven by Degiorgio entering the Grand Harbour in the direction towards Marsa.

Pressed by Defence Lawyer Martin Fenech as to how he was able to recognise George Degiorgio as the driver, Scerri replied that he had used a long lens camera and was roughly 70 metres away beneath the Great Siege Bell.

Recounting the day of the raid on 4 December, Scerri revealed that a Mercedes C-Class belonging to Alfred Degiorgio was found on the site. The following items were found during the search: a pen drive, a Garmin GPS, an internet key and some documents.

Four USB sticks and an internet router were found in an Audi belonging to George Degiorgio, while a search on Vince Muscat's car, a Toyota, yielded no findings.

Scerri also said that a modem, laptop, rechargeable battery, and a voucher for a 5 euro Vodafone card were also found at one of the accused's residences.

Inspector Keith Arnaud then provided the court with the Vodafone call logs of the three accused men after telling the court that the images and stills taken were of a high quality.

Legal aid Martin Fenech is assisting Vince Muscat.

Lawyers William Cuschieri and Martha Muscat are representing Alfred Degiorgio.

Legal Aid Josette Sultana is assisting George Degiorgio.

The prosecution is led by Deputy Attorney general Philip Galea Farrugia and Inspector Keith Arnaud.

Jason Azzopardi and Therese Comodini Cachia are parte civile.

Yesterday, the court heard how during the raid the police found a number of Nokia 105 mobile phones, the same model device data indicates was used to send the text message which triggered the bomb detonator.

Live Blog:

10.58am: The Magistrate rules that there is enough prima facie evidence to constitute an indictment. The case has now been deferred to 1 February 2018 at 9:30 am. As of tomorrow, the AG can issue a bill of indictment. 

10.57am: Inspector Keith Arnaud provides the calls logs of the accuseds’ mobile phones.

10.50am: Defence Lawyer Martin Fenech started questioning Scerri concerning the filming of the boat.

He asks how Scerri, who earlier said that he had filmed the boat after the explosion and noticed that George Degiorgio was the driver, was able to recognise the accused from a far distance.

Scerri replies that he used a long lens camera and was roughly 70m away.

10.48am: Following the raid, Scerri searched a Mercedes that belonged to Alfred Degiorgio, and an Audi belonging to George Degiorgio. A pen drive, a Garmin GPS, an internet key and some documents were found in the former, while 4 USB sticks and an internet router were taken from the latter.

Vince Muscat’s car, a Toyota, was also searched but nothing was found. He also recalled that a modem, laptop, rechargeable battery, and a voucher for a 5 euro Vodafone card were also found at one of the accused’s residence.

10.40am: PC Savior Scerri was next to testify, he told the court how after the arrival of FBI agents, he was directed to show them where the telecommunications towers around the area are located. The court previously heard how these antennas were used to ascertain that the phones used in the explosion were used out at sea.

He was tasked with examining various CCTV footage around Bidnija, and ascertaining the movements of the car the previous day, Sliema.

He went on to say how they began examining the grand harbour and noticed a boat. Footage of the boat, known as Maya and registered under George Degiorgio, was then given to the court.

10.32am: PC Josef Gerada tells the court that Daphne and Matthew Caruana Galizia had gone for a coffee at Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar, while the car was parked at the Trade Fair grounds. Gerada would also recount how he was one of the first to land off the quay on the day of the raid. He said there was another man there, Armando Chircop, but he was later released.

A white Mercedes was also confiscated by the police.

10.28am: Zammit then said how he would later speak to Matthew Caruana Galizia, who had also driven the vehicle, to identify his movements the previous day.  He said that Matthew Caruana Galizia used the car to drive from the Trade Fair Grounds to Exiles. The police looked at CCTV footage in the area.

Zammit told the court he was also involved in the Marsa raid.

10.20am: Police Constable Clayton Zammit who was on the duty on the day of the bomb takes the stand. Zammit recalled the events of the day, and noted how he took the details of Mario Vella, who he said had an argument with Matthew Caruana Galizia. He also told the court how he was tasked with verifying the vehicle.

10.18am: The case resumed