Maltese tycoon acquitted of orchestrating murder of renowned journalist

Image source, MATTHEW MIRABELLI/AFP via Getty ImagesImage caption, The shock murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia prompted widespread public outrage and protests on the streets of Malta.

Opinião: Lutando por justiça pela minha mãe assassinada Publicado em 2 de maio de 2019.

A Maltese businessman on trial over the murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has been acquitted.

Yorgen Fenech, 44, was accused of complicity in her murder and criminal association to commit murder. He denied all the charges.

In 2022, brothers George and Alfred Degiorgio were jailed for 40 years over the killing of Caruana Galizia, who was an outspoken critic of the government and had uncovered networks of corruption in Malta and abroad.

Ela foi morta por uma bomba de carro em outubro de 2017, com especulação na época de que figuras seniores do establishment poderiam ter estado envolvidas.

Fenech was cleared of both counts by an 8-1 margin after eight hours of deliberation by the jury, the Reuters news agency reported.

Os familiares dele gritaram de alegria na sala de audiências lotada em Valletta, enquanto a família de Caruana Galizia chorava, disse a agência.

Nine years after Daphne's brutal assassination, the institutional failures that enabled her murder remain unaddressed and unreformed," her family said in a statement reported by local media.

Lasting justice means no person should ever face the same risks again. Our country failed to protect Daphne's life. It owes it to her to prevent other lives being lost.

Daphne Caruana Galizia ganhou proeminência internacional por suas investigações sobre corrupção, lavagem de dinheiro e crime organizado, que ela publicou em seu blog Running Commentary.

She was deeply involved in the 2016 Panama Papers investigation - a cache of confidential documents leaked from a Panamanian law firm. The investigation exposed offshore structures and triggered corruption allegations directed at top government officials in Malta.

Her shocking assassination prompted widespread public outrage and protests on the streets of Malta at the time. She was 53 years old.

Fonte da imagem, Legenda da imagem Reuters, Yorgen Fenech fotografado fora do tribunal após sua absolvição.

During the trial, the jury heard that Fenech had wanted the journalist killed because she was about to reveal information about him.

One of Malta's richest men, Fenech is a well-known figure and was the owner of a company Caruana Galizia had written about months before her death.

Fenech negou as acusações e, durante o julgamento, desviou a culpa para seu antigo amigo próximo Keith Schembri, ex‑chefe de gabinete do então primeiro‑ministro Joseph Muscat e alvo das histórias de Caruana Galizia.

Muscat, who was never linked to the murder, stepped down in January 2020 due to the political fallout from the assassination.

Police told the court that Schembri had never been a suspect, and he has denied any role in the murder.

Em 2025, dois homens – Robert Agius e Jamie Vella – foram condenados à prisão perpétua por um juiz maltês por terem fornecido a bomba.

Caruana Galizia: Malta's anti-corruption warrior.

Irmãos presos por assassinato de jornalista maltês.