The lawyer representing the family of Nicolette Ghirxi, who was murdered in August, has question why the police put her alleged killer on the wanted list but then failed to arrest him when he came to Malta.

Knowing that Edward Johnston was on the wanted list, why did the police not arrest him when they became aware that he had arrived in Malta, lawyer Joseph Borda said on Facebook.

Ghirxi was found dead in her Swatar apartment in August 2024 at the age of 48. She is believed to have been murdered by Johnston, whom she had previously been in a relationship with. Johnston was killed some hours after in a standoff with the police after pointing a replica firearm at them in St Julians.

In the inquiry report, the recommendations of which were published today, it is stated that Johnston was put on the wanted list and the police system.

In reaction to the report, Borda questioned how it was possible then that Johnston was allowed to enter Malta with nothing being done. The lawyer also questioned why the police inspector, after having been informed by Ghirxi that Johnston had returned to Malta, then said that there was nothing on which to arrest Johnston despite him being on the wanted list. The lawyer added that aside from being on the wanted list, the law states that if someone refuses to cooperate with the police, then they are able to arrest the uncooperative person.

The lawyer asked why Johnston was on the wanted list to begin with if the inspector believed that there was no indication of high risk in this case. He also questioned how the inspector knew it was a low risk case if no risk assessment was conducted.

In his post, Borda questioned what proof the inquiry looked at and remarked that everything was done behind closed doors. He also said that there is evidence disproving the notion that Ghirxi was offered to do a risk assessment but chose not to. Additionally, he questioned why the police did not bring charges against Johnston to court and commented that Ghirxi was not called by the Cyber Crime unit regarding fake profiles, but that “Nicolette herself made the report”.

Borda sarcastically commented that the police were “totally in control” and that “it’s really her fault as she should have used a better word”. He said this in reaction to parts of the inquiry which state that evidence shows that the police “did not sleep on the case” and that Ghirxi had written in an email that she was “worried but not scared”

The Ghirxi family’s lawyer commented that the Police Commissioner had told them that the email was still being processed in reaction to a part of the inquiry which stated that no movement was made on the part of the inspector and no other contact was made with the police by Ghirxi between 8th August, which is when Ghirxi informed the police that Johnston was in Malta, and 12th August, which is the day she was killed