Convicted hitman Vince Muscat, widely known as Il-Koħħu, has pushed back against statements made by former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who yesterday questioned his reliability as a state witness.

Through his legal representative, Kirsty Muscat, the hitman maintained that his testimony has been thoroughly tested, highly consistent, and instrumental in achieving major legal breakthroughs. In a statement issued Wednesday, Muscat's lawyer said the comments made during a press conference earlier in the day were not made under oath and were "factually and legally incorrect in their entirety." 

In his press conference, the former prime minister referred to advice from former Attorney General Peter Grech. That advice had cautioned against granting a presidential pardon, citing concerns over Vince Muscat's memory following a past bullet wound to the head, as well as suggesting he was motivated by a government-announced financial reward.

In response, Vince Muscat's lawyer emphasised that his extensive cooperation served as the primary pillar for the prosecution in high-profile cases, including the assassinations of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia and lawyer Carmel Chircop.

Addressing allegations regarding financial motives, his lawyer clarified that any public reward discussions should not detract from his genuine cooperation, noting that he continues to serve a 15-year prison sentence regardless of his assistance to investigators.

His lawyer said his health condition was the result of a serious attempt on his life and had "absolutely no relevance" to the truthfulness of the information he provided to the authorities.

"No medical condition can be instrumentalised in this way to create a false impression about a person's credibility, least of all that of such an important witness," the statement said.