Keith Schembri is expected to return to the witness stand on Thursday for the third consecutive day of testimony in the trial by jury of Yorgen Fenech.
The defence set to begin its long-awaited cross-examination of the former OPM chief of staff after two dramatic days dominated by explosive admissions, denials and repeated courtroom clashes.
In his most consequential admission so far, the former OPM chief of staff told jurors that Yorgen Fenech had privately hinted at being involved in Daphne Caruana Galizia's assassination.
Although insisting Fenech never explicitly confessed, Schembri said his long-time friend gave him the impression he had been involved, leaving him "frozen". Schembri admitted his "one mistake" was not immediately informing then-prime minister Joseph Muscat, but maintained he still does not believe Fenech acted alone.
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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11:23 Proceedings have stopped for a short break
11:20 Schembri says Melvin Theuma never visited his house, though Yorgen Fenech had visited twice for lunch and Christmas drinks. When de Marco directly asked if he had ever told Melvin Theuma to kill Daphne Caruana Galizia, Schembri appeared visibly taken aback and answered, "What? Of course not."
De Marco proceeded to read from a transcript of a secretly recorded conversation where Theuma said he would tell Keith to remember how much he cried before their arrest. Schembri claimed Theuma was about to recount something he had said downstairs during the compilation of evidence to defence lawyer Charles Mercieca. This prompted lawyer Charles Mercieca to interject, shouting, "Don't invent any more stories about me!", to which Schembri replied while turning to face him, "Relax, I'm not inventing anything about you."
11:11 De Marco brought up further testimony from Kenneth Camilleri placing him in Żurrieq where Melvin Theuma spoke of needing bail and bags full of cash, which Schembri denied any knowledge of, stating he only learned about it through the media and noting they hardly ever spoke. When de Marco pointed out that secretly recorded conversations played during the trial featured Johann Cremona saying Schembri was the one who sent Camilleri, Schembri countered that it was "just a bluff." After de Marco highlighted that Cremona did not know he was being recorded at the time, Schembri argued that people lie either out of malice or to calm a situation down, ultimately agreeing with de Marco's suggestion that Cremona was simply bluffing to calm Melvin Theuma down.
11:06 de Marco asked Keith Schembri how OPM bodyguard Kenneth Camilleri ended up contacting Johann Cremona if Schembri claimed not to know him, prompting Schembri to dispute the connection and share a previously unmentioned incident involving Camilleri. Schembri stated that the prime minister had seven security officers, that he was close to six of them but not Camilleri, and that he and Camilleri frequently argued because Camilleri walked around Castille with his holster on and once accidentally discharged his firearm while bending over near Joseph Muscat's wife, after which Schembri threatened to fire him. When asked why he never reported this to MSS head Joe Bugeja, Schembri admitted he never did. De Marco then pressed Schembri on testimony from both Camilleri and Cremona alleging that Schembri called Camilleri after 8 and told him to contact Cremona to take someone - later identified as Melvin Theuma - to calm them down, which Schembri flatly rejected as lies.
10:55 Defence lawyer Giannella de Marco noted that Keith Schembri attended Castille meetings about the murder investigation, with Schembri saying that when he learned they were considering a presidential pardon for Melvin Theuma, he disagreed at the time and told them they already had enough evidence to arraign him. When asked if there was a disagreement between the police and Europol over arresting Theuma, Schembri attempted to ask a question back, prompting Judge Edwina Grima to intervene and remind him that he could not ask questions. Schembri said he never attended discussions with Europol officials. De Marco asks if Schembri used to call the police commissioner, to which Schembri stated he never called him about the case, only to request someone's transfer. When asked about Johann Cremona, Schembri denied knowing him beforehand, explaining that the first time he met him was at Castille after his secretary, Charlene, scheduled an appointment for a friend of Yorgen Fenech regarding a gaming-related matter.
10:45 Defence lawyer Giannella de Marco questioned Keith Schembri about his past interactions with murder middleman Melvin Theuma, pointing out a discrepancy between Schembri's previous testimony about finding Theuma waiting in his office and Theuma's claim that Schembri came down to the main entrance to meet him and give him a tour of Castille. Schembri acknowledged going downstairs and bringing Theuma up, but dismissed the claim that he gave him a tour, stating he only asked his secretary to make Theuma an espresso while Theuma asked for a job. Schembri argued that if he truly held the status of being "next only to God" as Theuma claimed, Theuma would not have needed to ask for a photo, adding that everyone visiting Castille wanted a picture with him. Schembri further explained that Sandro Craus was called in, after which Theuma went downstairs to give officials details relating to the job before leaving, and denied that Theuma told him he was a taxi driver, noting instead that someone downstairs had asked Theuma about being registered under a Portomaso contract, to which Theuma replied that the conditions were poor and he wanted to work for the government instead.
10:37 Defence lawyer Giannella de Marco noted Schembri had previously mentioned fingerprints from both of them but now insisted he never touched it. When de Marco asked about the contents of the letter, Schembri maintained he only learned about its contents and handwriting from the media. After de Marco asked if the letter had been provided to him as part of disclosure while he and his lawyers waited before interrogation, Schembri initially denied receiving documents, then corrected himself to acknowledge they showed it to him while reiterating that he never touched it and had never seen the document before. When pressed about Vella's claim that Schembri gave it to him, Schembri denied it. Finally, shifting focus to when Vella was being interrogated by police, Schembri denied that the police commissioner had contacted him directly, by phone, or through a relative's phone.
10:27 de Marco pressed Keith Schembri about Dr Adrian Vella's statement that Schembri told him to go upstairs and take whichever document he needed, to which Schembri replied by citing his history with cancer and explaining that Vella was often at his house. De Marco tells Schembri he could not answer every question by mentioning his cancer. Schembri sayshe had lots of blood test results upstairs and told Vella to take what he wanted. When De Marco argued that a doctor could certainly tell the difference between a blood test and another document, Schembri brought up that an expert had been appointed during the inquiry to examine fingerprints because they had both touched the document. After De Marco noted that Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud showed him the document during his interrogation at the police depot, Schembri insisted he never touched it, stating that Arnaud had held it out to him and explicitly told him not to touch it.
10:23 De Marco brings up allegations by Dr Adrian Vella that Schembri gave him a document to pass on to Yorgen Fenech. Schembri denies this, claiming instead that Vella went upstairs and picked up the document himself without him knowing what was on it. When De Marco questioned if Vella would simply walk into his house and help himself to documents, Schembri maintained that is what happened and accused de Marco of repeating a lie when she suggested Vella was telling the truth, telling her to ask Vella again while insisting he himself was telling the truth.
10:18 de Marco asks Schembri about visits from Dr Adrian Vella, specifically questioning if the doctor had gone to Schembri's house on November 19, to which Schembri replied that Vella visited like many other people although he could not specifically recall that date. When asked if Vella came over during the week of his arrest, Schembri noted that if he was not mistaken, it coincided with the day of Dr Joseph Muscat's party at Girgenti, and acknowledged it was possible he called Vella to come over before heading to that event.
10:16 Giannella de Marco asks Keith Schembri about the search of his Mellieħa home, noting that Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud did not seize electronic devices personally before scene-of-crime officers were called and Schembri was taken to the police depot in an unmarked van. When asked about phones seen in police photographs, Schembri stated they belonged to his mother and the nanny, rejecting the claim that he selectively pointed out devices for officers to take. Schembri challenged the court to bring Arnaud and the forensic officers back to look him in the eye, insisting they were lying about him just like many others.
10:07 De Marco noted Schembri's testimony from the previous day about having cancer twice and travelling to the United States for treatment. Schembri says that Fenech and Dr Adrian Vella travelled to the US with him. Schembri explains that shortly before that, he had undergone surgery in the UK where doctors discovered something else similar to multiple sclerosis, requiring tough treatment where he had to stop chemotherapy and receive injections in his eyes, only for the cancer to return afterward. When De Marco remarked that Fenech had supported him through it all, Schembri agreed, clarifying that the support was personal rather than financial, and stating he would never forget it.
10:03 Schembri states that he used to go the extra mile with anyone who needed help because that was his job, prompting defence lawyer Giannella de Marco to suggest that having an open-door policy and trying to help everyone did not mean those people were his friends, to which Schembri replied that he was an open character with everyone who spoke to him. Schembri says that while the prime minister remained the prime minister, he would have gone through fire for Yorgen, admitting that doing so was a mistake.
9:59 When De Marco notes that Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud testified Schembri had said his phone was lost during the November 2019 police search, Schembri clarifies that he did not call it lost, but rather stated he did not know where it was, a fact he maintains to this day. De Marco then referenced Schembri's testimony from the previous day, recalling that Schembri had described Fenech as one of Malta's top five businessmen, a generous man who never asked for anything in return, and noted Schembri's comment that he entered politics knowing there would be life after politics. While Schembri nodded to these points, he rejected De Marco's suggestion that he had wanted to invest in his friendship with Fenech for future business opportunities, clarifying instead that they had been friends for years and that he had friends from all walks of life.
9:50 Defence lawyer de Marco asks Schembri about the timeline of his arrest, asking if workmen were really present at 5:30am, to which Schembri replied that they arrived at 5:45am. When de Marco asked if he was arrested at 5:30am, Schembri denied it firmly, noting he would never forget that his daughter had already gone to school. Recalling the moment police arrived, Schembri stated he was still in bed when officers knocked on the door, his wife answered it, and he went downstairs after the officers asked for him.
9:43 Under continued cross-examination by de Marco, Schembri stated he was never told about allegations that he had engaged Melvin Theuma, noting that investigators were certain he did not know Theuma, let alone engage him. When asked who informed him that Yorgen Fenech had turned on him and that an arrest was imminent, Schembri maintained he did not know who specifically told him, though he acknowledged that the prime minister was being kept informed of developments. Schembri reiterated that he handed his resignation to Joseph Muscat at the prime minister's house the night before his arrest, denied that the police commissioner had briefed him on the investigation, and insisted he assumed the police were at Dr Adrian Vella's house simply because they were friends, just as he was friends with the Fenech family, rather than due to any letter.
9:38 De Marco: Could you turn and face me?
Schembri: I'd prefer to look at the jurors.
Schembri testifies that he resigned shortly before police arrived to arrest him. When defence lawyer Giannella de Marco asked who had been informing him about developments in the murder investigation, Schembri stated that until he resigned at around 11pm, he was being kept informed about everything that was happening. Asked if he continued attending the Castille meetings concerning the investigation, Schembri replied that he did not stay in those meetings, though he was kept informed about matters that concerned him.
9:34 De Marco asks Schembri about his missing mobile phone, with Schembri saying he suspected it had been stolen. Schembri explains that the final recorded activity on the device at 5:03am was a phone call from Dr Adrian Vella informing him that the police were knocking on his door. He said he had been informed by the police about a statement made by Yorgen Fenech.
9:27 Keith Schembri took the stand to face cross-examination from Yorgen Fenech's defence lawyer, Giannella de Marco.
9:20 Harmionen confirms two additional reports regarding data extractions from electronic devices seized on November 14, 2019, in Xgħajra and Marsascala, followed by three more reports concerning devices seized that same day from a garage in Marsascala and Melvin Theuma's residence in Żurrieq, concluding his testimony with no cross-examination.
9:15 Before Keith Schembri took the stand, Europol digital forensics expert Sami Harmionen testifies as the day's first witness, confirming his first report on the forensic extraction of data from electronic devices seized during a December 22, 2017 inquiry at a Mosta farmhouse, as well as a second report concerning data extracted from devices seized from a St Paul's Bay apartment linked to one of the Degiorgio brothers.
9:10 In a statement issued on Thursday morning, the Daphne Foundation accused Malta's government of failing to act to deliver the reforms needed to protect journalists, noting that most public inquiry recommendations remain unimplemented and emphasising that true justice requires dismantling the systems that allowed corruption, impunity, and organised crime to flourish, rather than just securing murder convictions.
9:05 The court is in session