The trial by jury of businessman Yorgen Fenech enters its 20th day on Thursday, with Johann Cremona expected to resume his testimony before Madam Justice Edwina Grima and the jury.

Wednesday's proceedings were largely dominated by the playing of hours of secretly recorded conversations between Cremona and Melvin Theuma, as prosecutor Godwin Cini repeatedly questioned the witness about remarks heard on the recordings.

Throughout his testimony, Cremona insisted that many of the statements did not reflect genuine knowledge but were "bluffs" intended to reassure an increasingly anxious Theuma. Cremona said Theuma was living in constant fear as police investigations intensified.

Yorgen Fenech, a businessman, has pleaded not guilty to two principal charges: complicity in the wilful homicide of Daphne Caruana Galizia and criminal association to commit the murder. 

Caruana Galizia, a columnist with The Malta Independent, was killed in a car bomb on 16 October, 2017.

Five men have already been convicted in connection with Caruana Galizia's assassination. Vince Muscat admitted his role in the murder in 2021 and was sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment. Alfred and George Degiorgio each received 40-year prison sentences after pleading guilty in 2022, while Robert Agius and Jamie Vella were sentenced to life imprisonment in 2025 for supplying the bomb used in the attack.

The prosecution is being led by Attorney General lawyers Godwin Cini, Anthony Vella and Danika Vella, assisted by Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud and Inspector Kurt Zahra. Fenech is represented by lawyers Charles Mercieca, Gianella Demarco and Gianluca Caruana Curran, while lawyers Therese Comodini Cachia and Jason Azzopardi are appearing parte civile on behalf of the Caruana Galizia family.

Judge Edwina Grima is presiding.

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11:06 In another recording played in court, Johann Cremona is heard suggesting to Melvin Theuma that he, Theuma, and Yorgen Fenech could arrange monthly payments of 2,000 euros each for George Degiorgio, Alfred Degiorgio, and Vince Muscat, il-Koħħu. Cremona told jurors that no such payment arrangement ever actually materialised. He also denied Theuma's claim that a meeting had taken place where they agreed to shift the blame for the murder onto former minister Chris Cardona. Cremona explained that at the time, Fenech was staying at a ranch in Zebbug, and on one occasion he drove Theuma there to drop off a bag of clothes where Fenech met them near the road, but he insisted there was never any discussion about pinning the murder on Cardona. 

10:55 In another recording excerpt, Cremona told Theuma that everything hinged on something Theuma had previously said, and instructed him to prepare the recording so that he could take it to the police commissioner and Yorgen Fenech. While Cremona stated that Theuma had told him the police commissioner knew about the recordings, he could no longer recall which specific phrase he was referencing. Cremona was also heard telling Theuma that the police wanted to raid him because they were under pressure.

10:50 Cremona testifies that Yorgen Fenech knew there was a problem after discovering Melvin Theuma had been secretly recording him, adding that he had been patient with Theuma for a long time while trying to manage his changing moods and calm him down. In an excerpt played in court, Cremona is heard telling Theuma that he held the recordings and that the power was in his hands, though Cremona insisted he had never actually heard the recordings himself and explained he was hardly going to tell Theuma that what he possessed was worthless.

10:42 In a further recording, Cremona told Theuma that authorities knew everything, specifically that Yorgen Fenech had engaged him. Cremona confirmed he was referring to investigators allegedly knowing this connection, though he insisted he possessed no such information himself and was once again simply bluffing and going along with Theuma. An additional excerpt made reference to someone taking cocaine, though no further context was provided.

10:38 In another excerpt discussing lead investigator Keith Arnaud stating he could not arrest someone without evidence, Cremona testifies that he could not remember the context and was likely bluffing again. He was also heard telling Theuma that had the media mentioned his name nine months earlier during the period when convicted hitman Vince Muscat began speaking to the police, Theuma's name would have surfaced.

10:34 As prosecutors continued playing conversation excerpts, Cremona was heard telling Theuma that authorities were going to apprehend individuals because they had been under surveillance for some time, and remarked that Theuma had been mentioned in the media without his name being published. Cremona maintained in court that these statements were merely bluffing on his part.

10:29 Business associate of Yorgen Fenech, Johann Cremona, takes the stand to continue facing questions regarding secret recordings played in court between him and self-confessed murder middleman Melvin Theuma.

10:12 Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Giannella de Marco, Europol witness Julia Toma clarified that she was not formally appointed as an expert by the magistrate to examine the phones, but was instead tasked by her line manager, with whom her communication was strictly maintained. Toma stated that her manager gave her no reason for instructing her to stop the extraction, specifically denying that he mentioned any data leaks from the phone. When questioned about access, Toma testified that she was the only person who accessed the device, stated she did not remember if she ever gave the Maltese police access or a partial extraction, and explained that she was not allowed to keep personal notes. 

10:07 Toma states that Europol successfully identified the six-digit passcode for one of the iPhones, but her manager subsequently instructed her to halt the partial extraction process, leaving the second iPhone permanently locked. She then proceeded to extract data from the SIM cards, while the phones themselves were handed over to another Europol colleague for further technical work. 

9:45 Toma testifies that Europol carried out forensic extractions from Samsung and iPhone devices as well as SIM cards handed over by the Maltese police, with the work performed at Europol's headquarters. She explained that two other iPhones were protected by six-digit passcodes, noting that while some devices can be accessed without a code, others require a brute-force system to test possible combinations. Ultimately, one of the phones could not be accessed because the system was unable to determine its six-digit passcode. 

9:28 Toma states that her report covered the extraction and analysis of data from electronic devices belonging to Melvin Theuma, Charmaine Farrugia, Shainne Farrugia, and Ryan Farrugia. She added that a separate report covered forensic work carried out from November 15, 2019 onwards, following instructions issued through the magisterial inquiry. The exhibits had been seized during searches linked to Theuma in 2019 and included storage devices used by Theuma, from which forensic images were created for analysis. 

9:18 Toma testifies about a forensic report covering work carried out between November 15 and December 2019, explaining that her primary task was to provide forensic extraction support, after which the extracted material was categorized for analysis.

9:10 The judge and jury entered the courtroom, and Julia Toma, a forensic expert who worked with Europol between 2019 and 2023, began testifying via video link, though attendees note that the sound quality inside the courtroom was poor.