After seven weeks of hearing testimony about the people, places and events surrounding the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, the jurors in the Yorgen Fenech trial by jury on Friday and Saturday saw the case move from the courtroom into the real-world locations at its centre, travelling in a heavily guarded convoy from the Marsa potato shed to Bidnija, Mellieħa and other sites linked to the evidence.
The site visits, which began Friday and continued on Saturday, were conducted under a court decree that prohibited reporting on them until they had concluded.
Journalists following the proceedings were kept at a distance throughout the day and were not allowed to enter any of the locations visited by the jury.
There were long waits in the intense summer heat, limited visibility and repeated instructions from police for journalists to move back, move away or position themselves on the other side.
Vince Muscat, il-Kohhu (white cap) leaving the Marsa potato shed, the first place visited by jurors
The first stop on Friday was the Marsa potato shed at around 8.30am, a location which has featured prominently in testimony concerning the murder plot.
Melvin Theuma, Vince 'il-Koħħu' Muscat and George Degiorgio were present at the site, together with Fenech, who was required to attend each location visited by the jury.
Journalists were not allowed into the area and remained around 50 metres away from the potato shed, as the jurors, judge, lawyers, accused and police officers carried out the first visit.
Vince Muscat, il-Kohhu, pictured on the site where Daphne's movements were monitored by the hitmen
The convoy then headed towards Bidnija, arriving at around 9.20am at the vantage point from where the hitmen were said to have watched Caruana Galizia's home.
Theuma and Muscat were present as the jurors were shown the location, with police again keeping journalists away from the group.
At around 9.55am, the convoy moved to Caruana Galizia's home in Bidnija.
The Bidnija Road, the site where Daphne's car exploded, killing her, on 16 October 2017
The jurors entered the property, accompanied by those required to attend the site visit, while journalists remained outside, near the area where Caruana Galizia's car ended up following the bomb blast. The spot is now marked by the makeshift Bidnija memorial.
From Bidnija, the convoy continued towards Mellieħa, arriving at around 11.15am at a villa belonging to former chief of staff Keith Schembri.
Dr Adrian Vella and SOCO officer Michelle Camilleri were expected to be present at the site. Journalists understood, however, that Schembri himself was not there, with his wife and dogs reportedly at the villa.
The convoy then broke for lunch around midday.
By 1.45pm, journalists were back on board and waiting for the jurors to board their van for the afternoon visits.
The accused, Yorgen Fenech, during the site visit at Bidnija
The convoy resumed its journey and reached the Pembroke police compound at around 2.30pm.
There, the jurors and accused were taken to see Caruana Galizia's burnt car, which is being stored at the police compound.
Again, journalists remained outside the compound and were unable to follow the group inside.
Around 10 vehicles made up the convoy throughout the day, with several police cars and vans transporting the jurors, lawyers, and the accused.
Around five or six police motorcyclists escorted the convoy, repeatedly stopping traffic and clearing junctions to allow the procession to pass without interruption.
The final location observed by journalists on Friday was the Portomaso marina, where the convoy arrived at around 2.40pm.
The jurors were taken to the area where Fenech had allegedly attempted to escape before his arrest. They were then taken further up into the Portomaso complex.
The Portomaso marina, the last place jurors visited in Friday. It is the place where Fenech was caught
Journalists were unable to establish with certainty which particular premises or location the jurors visited inside the complex, as they remained outside and had little visibility of what was taking place inside the complex.
The visits gave the jury a physical view of locations that had, until now, been described to them largely through testimony, evidence and photographs in court.
Yet for those covering the proceedings, much of the day remained out of sight, with police repeatedly keeping journalists away and restricting access to the locations.
Yorgen Fenech walking along the Portomaso area on Friday during the on-site visit
That pattern continued on Saturday, as jurors were taken to four locations in the morning.
The first on the agenda was Yorgen Fenech's 'ranch' in Zebbug (above). Nestled down a side road in Zebbug, jurors were shown around the property - journalists, on the other hand, remained outside, behind the gates.
Next came a visit to Melvin Theuma's apartment in Zurrieq. Theuma and former OPM Security Kenneth Camilleri were both present, as curious onlookers emerged from balconies and rooftops in a bid to understand what was happening.
Melvin Theuma
Jurors did not enter Theuma's apartment, but rather were shown its entrance and what seemed to be a small garage drive-in some doors down.
The police convoy then made its way to Marsaskala where Theuma had a garage. He was arrested in 2019 two days earlier than he had been tipped off after he was seen clearing out this garage.
The media was held quite far off from the area, meaning that it was difficult to ascertain what jurors were being shown. Regardless, it was not a process which took so long, and within 15 minutes , the convoy set off for its last stop: the Office of the Prime Minister.
Castille has cropped up during this case on several occasions, not least due to the infamous photo that Theuma snapped with Keith Schembri - a copy of which was found in Theuma's ice cream box of evidence.
Jurors did not enter Castille through the building's majestic front door: they instead were whisked through Castille's side entrance. The media were not allowed inside.
The case will now continue at 2:30pm on Saturday with Theuma's cross examination.