Police began monitoring Melvin Theuma after information provided by Vince Muscat in 2018, subsequently intercepting calls in which Theuma argued with Yorgen Fenech and said he was secretly recording him, Inspector Kurt Zahra told jurors on Monday.

The morning session of the Yorgen Fenech trial was dominated by legal arguments over the scope of evidence that could be presented to the jury, rather than by substantive testimony about the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

The trial of Yorgen Fenech continued Monday following the conclusion of Melvin Theuma's lengthy testimony, which ended on Saturday with the defence accusing the self-confessed murder middleman of lying to protect Keith Schembri and tailoring his evidence to secure a presidential pardon.

Theuma finally stepped down from the witness stand on Saturday after days of intense cross-examination, during which Fenech's lawyers sought to dismantle his credibility and challenge his account that the businessman commissioned the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Fenech 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, Giannella de Marco 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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18:13 That brings today's testimony to an end, as the judge adjourns proceedings.

18:06 The court says jurors will be able to watch the audiovisual recording of Fenech's interrogation tomorrow.

Returning to the interrogation, Zahra says Fenech told investigators that Theuma had drawn up the murder plan with three associates before informing Keith Schembri. According to Fenech, Schembri responded: "Go ahead, go ahead, go ahead."

Fenech claimed Theuma later told him that he had already paid €30,000. He said he eventually gave Theuma €50,000 because he did not want him to lose his money, while also saying he felt threatened by Theuma.

Fenech also alleged that Schembri had paid €30,000 towards an earlier plan to kill Caruana Galizia, around a year and a half after Labour came to power in 2013. That plan never materialised.

Zahra also recalls that Fenech's lawyers filed a habeas corpus application challenging the legality of his arrest, which the court rejected.

17:48 The defence raises a point of law, arguing that jurors should hear Fenech's recorded statement directly, rather than have an interrogating officer decide which parts to recount in court.

Prosecutor Anthony Vella says Zahra is entitled to testify about his investigation, including statements given by the accused.

Judge Edwina Grima rules that Zahra may outline what emerged from the investigation but should not interpret Fenech's statement himself. She notes that the recording remains the best evidence.

17:42 Zahra says Fenech initially sought to avoid investigators' questions, repeatedly shifting the discussion to issues he wanted to raise and accusing police of following a "script" supplied by a corrupt government.

Investigators, Zahra says, were careful not to allow Fenech to dictate the course of the interrogation and repeatedly brought the questioning back to Caruana Galizia's murder.

Fenech told police that the murder plot had originated with Keith Schembri. He recounted a conversation at his ranch with Schembri and Melvin Theuma, during which Caruana Galizia's writings about Schembri and his illness were discussed.

According to Fenech's account, Theuma later told him while driving him home: "We can get rid of her quickly," before referring him to three associates.

17:38 Prosecutor Anthony Vella turns back to the November 2019 search of Keith Schembri's Mellieħa home.

Zahra says photographs taken during the morning search do not show a particular mobile phone which is now being shown to jurors. He explains that scene-of-crime officers returned to the property later and seized devices belonging to other family members which had not been taken earlier.

He maintains that he and Arnaud had carried out a proper search of the property that morning.

Zahra's account differs from evidence heard on July 27, when two scene-of-crime officers testified that investigators had instructed them to seize only electronic devices later identified or "flagged" by Schembri himself, rather than conduct a conventional search.

17:24 Zahra says Fenech told police that on November 15, Adrian Vella and Keith Schembri had devised a plan to take him to Gozo and help him flee while a team of lawyers was found for him.

17:10 Zahra says Theuma was granted a presidential pardon on November 25, after investigators corroborated parts of his account with information provided by Vince Muscat and evidence gathered during their own investigation.

The previous day, doctor Adrian Vella had visited Fenech at his Portomaso home with documents which he said had been given to him by Keith Schembri to pass on to Fenech.

Vella was arrested in the early hours of November 26. During questioning, he spoke about communications between Fenech and Schembri and told investigators that Schembri had reassured Fenech that police were not going to arrest him.

Schembri was arrested on November 26, the same day he resigned as chief of staff. 

Zahra stresses that police also searched Schembri's Mellieħa home, where his wife and one of his daughters were present. Schembri objected when officers moved to seize his daughter's laptop, saying it contained a school project.

Sergeant Tonna contacted Arnaud about the laptop, but Arnaud insisted that it be seized.

Some of Zahra's testimony may sound familiar. Lead investigator Keith Arnaud has already taken the court through the events leading up to the arrests and the investigation that followed.

16:52 Zahra says Theuma told investigators that Fenech had learnt that Vince Muscat, known as il-Koħħu, had spoken to investigator Keith Arnaud just two days after the meeting took place. Theuma said he then relayed that information to the Degiorgio brothers in prison.

Zahra also turns to Signal chats recovered from material found in Theuma's box. In one exchange dated November 13, 2019 - the day before Theuma was arrested - Theuma asked Fenech to delay his arrest and speak to "the one from Luqa", which Zahra says was a reference to then-police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar.

16:45 Zahra says Theuma told investigators that after Caruana Galizia was murdered, he handed Alfred Degiorgio the outstanding €120,000, together with another €5,000 for binoculars.

Theuma also recounted warning one of the Degiorgio brothers that the person behind the murder - whom he did not identify by name - had learnt that police had traced the message used to detonate the bomb.

Zahra says investigators subsequently began preparing to arrest Fenech, who was eventually taken into custody on December 5, 2019.

According to Zahra, Theuma said he had started secretly recording Fenech because he feared the businessman might have him killed and wanted evidence he could use to protect himself.

As the interrogation sessions continued, Theuma began explaining the contents and context of those recordings to investigators.

His account included references to Kenneth Camilleri, Keith Schembri and attempts to secure bail for the Degiorgio brothers. Theuma told police that Camilleri had assured him the brothers would be granted bail, and said he linked Schembri to the episode because Camilleri had approached him.

16:35 Zahra says Theuma told investigators that the Degiorgios had initially struggled to track Caruana Galizia's movements. According to Theuma, Fenech told him she could be found at a cafeteria in Naxxar, information he then relayed to Alfred Degiorgio.

Theuma also said Alfred later gave him a burner phone. The phone was accidentally used by Theuma's son during a trip to Disneyland and was subsequently used by Theuma himself when Degiorgio asked to meet him in Bidnija and show him the vantage point overlooking Caruana Galizia's home.

16:31 Court is back in session, with prosecutor Anthony Vella questioning Zahra about Theuma's police interrogations.

16:05 Zahra says that during his first two interrogation sessions, Theuma recounted what he knew about the murder from memory, before investigators played any of the recordings he had secretly made.

Theuma told police that around three weeks before the 2017 general election, Fenech had asked him to approach George Degiorgio, known as iċ-Ċiniż, about killing Caruana Galizia. According to Theuma, Fenech had said she was going to publish information about his uncle Ray.

Theuma said he instead approached Alfred Degiorgio and met him at the Busy Bee, where he told him that someone wanted Caruana Galizia killed. They agreed on a €30,000 upfront payment.

On that note, the judge orders a short break. We'll be back shortly.

15:55 Zahra says Theuma's box was opened in the presence of Magistrate Gabriella Vella, with the entire process recorded on film.

Inside, investigators found three mobile phones, an image of a message from a contact saved as "Yorgin", photographs with Keith Schembri, rolled-up papers, pen drives and a recording device.

Theuma told investigators that he was prepared to disclose everything he knew about Caruana Galizia's murder in exchange for a presidential pardon.

Zahra explains that police do not have the authority to grant such pardons. Their role is to assess the information being offered and draw up a report on the request.

On November 19, Theuma began providing investigators with details about the murder and was questioned over six separate sessions.

15:50 Zahra says investigators decided against arresting Theuma at that point. Instead, the Economic Crimes Unit opened a separate investigation into suspected illegal gambling and money laundering.

15:48 Zahra says that in April 2018, Vince Muscat, known as il-Koħħu, asked through his lawyer to speak to Keith Arnaud about the murder investigation.

During those discussions, Muscat told investigators that he had driven Alfred Degiorgio to the Busy Bee café, where Degiorgio met Melvin Theuma.

Police subsequently placed Theuma under surveillance and began intercepting his phone calls. Zahra says investigators overheard him arguing with a man they later identified as Yorgen Fenech.

They also intercepted Theuma saying that he was secretly recording Fenech and that he was paying €100 a week to each of the Degiorgio brothers and Muscat while they were in prison.

15:40 Zahra says the investigation entered a second phase after the Degiorgio brothers and Muscat were charged, with police requesting that the magisterial inquiry be reopened because they suspected other people had been involved.

Investigators were also monitoring calls involving the brothers' sibling, Mario Degiorgio. In one conversation, Mario told George to reassure Alfred about a third person, to which George replied: "I met that person."

15:31 Zahra says the investigation eventually led police to identify brothers Alfred and George Degiorgio and Vince Muscat as suspects.

15:21 Zahra says FBI investigators arrived in Malta on October 19 and began analysing mobile phone data and antenna locations, while the Maltese police continued interviewing witnesses.

Forensic examinations established that the bomb had been placed beneath Caruana Galizia's seat and was detonated through a message reading "REM1=ON".

The investigation also identified three burner phones, whose activity was traced to the Marsa potato shed, which Zahra describes as a place notorious for being frequented by people involved in crime.

Investigators eventually established that the bomb had been planted in Caruana Galizia's car at around 12.40am on the night before her murder.

15:14 Zahra also spoke to Carmen Wallace Sammut.

Sammut told him that three weeks before, she saw a small white car with people in it.

The car was present on the day of the murder starting at 9am and remained until 2:30pm, but, this time, no people were in it.

A magisterial inquiry was opened, and inspections began their investigation.

They found the viewpoint where the witness recalled seeing the car, and there they found a cigarette butt.

15:11 Zahra proceeded by conducting preliminary door-to-door inquiries to see if there were any eyewitnesses.

He remembers speaking to a man named Frans Sant.

Sant had recalled hearing two explosions, describing them as "a small explosion, then a scream, then a big explosion."

It was then that he saw Caruana Galizia's car swerve from the road into the field.

15:04 Zahra says that by the time he arrived at the scene, the fire had been extinguished, although smoke was still rising from the car. Police had already cordoned off the area.

He recalls seeing black tyre marks on the road and debris strewn across the area. He later realised that some of what he had initially taken to be debris was actually a mixture of metal fragments and human remains.

Zahra says he spoke to Inspector Nicky Vella, who had established that the vehicle, bearing registration QQZ 668, was leased but registered in Caruana Galizia's name.

Matthew Caruana Galizia and his aunt, Daphne's sister, were also present. According to Zahra, Matthew told him that his mother had left home for a bank appointment but returned after realising she had forgotten her cheque book. She then set off again, after which he heard the explosion.

15:01 Inspector Kurt Zahra takes the stand. He tells the court he has been a police officer for 24 years, spending the last nine with the Major Crimes Unit. When Caruana Galizia was murdered, he had been serving in the unit for around seven months.

Zahra says his involvement in the murder investigation began the same day of the murder. At around 3pm, while at his office at police headquarters, he received a call reporting that a car had exploded in Triq il-Bidnija, Mosta.

As he made his way to the scene, Inspector James Grech called him and said the victim was believed to be Daphne Caruana Galizia.

15:00 Inspector Kurt Colombo Zahra is the next witness to take the stand. Before he begins testifying, the defence asks Judge Edwina Grima to caution Zahra against making any reference to Yorgen Fenech's request for a presidential pardon following his arrest.

12:40: The rest of the Inspector's testimony revolves around confirming statements, evidence, and receipts of evidence.

The court stops the sitting for the customary lunch break.  The case will resume at 2:30pm with the testimony of inspector Kurt Zahra, who was one of the investigators along with Keith Arnaud.

12:25 The inspector exhibits another document, which includes chats between Yorgen Fenech and someone saved as "K". 

12:20 The prosecution directed attention to two specific documents retrieved from the ice cream box, displaying them on courtroom screens for the jurors to examine. Following an objection from the defence alleging that the prosecution was straying outside the parameters of the court's earlier decree, Judge Edwina Grima instructed the prosecution to proceed by reading aloud the inspector's exact testimony from the previous inquiry and having him formally confirm its contents. 

12:15 Court is back in session. Inspector Sean Friggieri takes the stand again.

11:45 Court takes a short break

11:44 Judge Edwina Grima upholds the defence's objection and instructs the jurors to completely disregard everything Inspector Sean Friggieri had testified about during the morning session. While the inspector was permitted to remain on the witness stand, the court placed strict limits on his testimony, ruling that he could only present and speak about documents he had previously exhibited during the magisterial inquiry. Furthermore, the judge barred him from introducing any compact discs containing statements from third parties not indicated on the official witness list. 

11:31 The prosecution counters that the witness already testified in the inquiry and the documents he worked on form part of the exhibits of the case.

11:10 Defence lawyer Charles Mercieca intensified the pushback against Inspector Sean Friggieri's continued presence on the stand, arguing that the prosecution had introduced a witness who was never properly indicated on their official witness list and was now being questioned on topics he had never previously testified about in this case. Raising a formal objection, Mercieca asked the court to bar the inspector from proceeding with his testimony at this stage and to explicitly direct the jurors to disregard everything he had stated so far. 

10:43 The argument is about text chats involving Raymond Aquilina, the former head of the police anti-money laundering unit, who faces separate charges of money laundering and corruption alongside Yorgen Fenech.

The prosecution argued that the relationship between Fenech and Aquilina was relevant to the current proceedings. The defence objected, contending that if the matter held such significance, it should have been raised during the compilation of evidence stage.

Judge Edwina Grima upheld the defence's objection, ruling that the investigation regarding Raymond Aquilina could not be introduced because it forms part of a separate, pending criminal case that also implicates the accused.

10:30 The jurors have been sent out again as the prosecution and defence lock horns. 

10:25 The criminal complaint FCID was investigating was against Keith Schembri, Friggieri tells the court. Investigators established that there was "a close relationship" between Schembri and Yorgen Fenech. 

10:23 With jurors back min the courtroom, Inspector Sean Friggieri explains that between December 2019 and January 2020, his primary responsibility involved gathering evidence and analysing data extracted from numerous seized electronic devices, including mobile phones and laptops belonging to individuals arrested in connection with the case. Among the seized items was an ice cream box recovered from Melvin Theuma, which investigators later came to describe as a Pandora's box because it held critical evidence, such as recordings of secret conversations with Yorgen Fenech and the photograph of Theuma alongside Keith Schembri. Friggieri noted that the initial actions taken by the Financial Crimes Investigation Department focused on collecting testimonies and determining whether any of the recovered data contained relevant information concerning the alleged leaks of official secrets. 

10:09 Judge Edwina Grima delivered her ruling, directing that Inspector Sean Friggieri cannot testify regarding other investigations that are extraneous to the current case, as doing so could improperly imply that the accused has other pending criminal cases or is under investigation for separate crimes. The judge instructed that the witness must strictly limit his testimony to his work and findings directly related to this specific case. 

10:06 The legal debate continues on the scope and admissibility of Inspector Sean Friggieri's testimony. The defence argues that allowing the witness to introduce new material could unfairly prejudice Yorgen Fenech by suggesting bad character or introducing unlinked criminal acts, pointing to a prior judicial decree barring any surprises during the jury stage. Conversely, the prosecution maintains that the witness was entirely admissible having testified during the inquiry stage, and asserted that a witness cannot be restricted to previous phrasing and is bound simply to present the truth of the investigation. 

9:52 Prosecution lawyer Anthony Vella pushed back against the defence's objections, arguing that Inspector Sean Friggieri was present to testify on both the previously gathered evidence and the comprehensive findings of his investigations. Vella insisted that the court cannot be selective or allow the defence to dictate what evidence is presented, maintaining that the inspector must be permitted to testify fully regarding everything that emerged from his official inquiries. 

9:48 Defence lawyer Charles Mercieca raised several points of law, first complaining that Inspector Sean Friggieri was testifying about certain matters for the very first time, which he argued was inconsistent with standards in previous jury trials. His second objection concerned prosecution questions regarding investigations extending beyond the specific murder charge, arguing that this line of questioning could improperly imply that Yorgen Fenech had committed other unrelated crimes. The defence formally requested that the court restrict the inspector's testimony strictly to matters he had previously covered in prior testimony. 

9:39 Inspector Sean Friggieri said that in December 2019, Assistant Commissioner Ian Abdilla contacted him regarding a formal criminal complaint. The complaint was lodged by the family of Daphne Caruana Galizia based on revelations that emerged in court between November and December, during the period when Yorgen Fenech was arrested and multiple individuals were called to testify. According to that testimony, there were strong indications that confidential information was being leaked to Fenech by Keith Schembri, who was serving as chief of staff to Prime Minister Joseph Muscat at the time. The complaint specifically targeted Schembri on suspicion of unlawfully leaking official information. 

9:37 The next witness to take the stand is Inspector Sean Friggieri, who has served at the Financial Crimes Investigation Department for the past decade. He testified that he first became aware of Yorgen Fenech on the night prior to Fenech's arrest, noting that he had never previously been involved in any investigation where Fenech was named as a suspect or a complainant. Because he was assigned to the economic crimes squad at the time, he and several fellow officers were called in and instructed to remain on site as authorities anticipated launching multiple parallel investigations. 

9:30 Roberta Bonello Felice took the stand as the first witness of the day. Her brief testimony centred on confirming various documents and police statements she had previously transcribed from individuals featured prominently in the trial, including Yorgen Fenech's physician Adrian Vella, Fenech's yacht captain Logan Wood, former Office of the Prime Minister security guard Kenneth Camilleri, and Edgar Brincat, an associate of middleman Melvin Theuma. 

9:22 Judge Edwina Grima entered the courtroom and before the jurors were brought in, prosecution lawyer Anthony Vella informed the court that the prosecution intended to reference evidence from the inquiry into police leaks, a case in which Keith Schembri faces charges of breaching the Official Secrets Act. However, the prosecution did not have the CD containing the evidence, although one of the scheduled witnesses brought a copy. Judge Grima expressed clear annoyance at the mishap, stating that such evidentiary materials must be flagged well in advance so the court's IT team can locate them on the evidence list before the witness testifies, particularly since that witness was first in line for the day's proceedings.