The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) warned this Thursday that the recent acquittal of businessman Yorgen Fenech, identified as the mastermind behind the assassination of reporter Daphne Caruana Galizia by car bomb in 2017, marks a concerning "precedent" for Europe.
"Yesterday's verdict means that, almost nine years after Daphne Caruana Galizia's assassination shocked Europe, Malta still has not condemned the person who orchestrated the crime. It is a heartbreaking situation for her family, who have tirelessly fought for justice," lamented CPJ's Deputy Director of Incidents, Tom Gibson, in a statement.
The CPJ official described the jury's ruling, which exonerated Fenech of charges of complicity and conspiracy, as "devastating for all journalists," reminding that journalism has the mission to "hold the powerful accountable, both in Malta and across the continent."
In the same vein, he questioned the Maltese state for its "promises" regarding journalist protection and law enforcement, emphasizing that Malta "has not fulfilled most of them." "That is unacceptable. We will continue to campaign for reform and support Daphne Caruana Galizia's family until justice is served," he argued.
The CPJ also echoed the message shared by the journalist's family after the jury's decision was announced. "During Fenech's trial, which has lasted for months, we have heard from many people, but we will never see or hear Daphne again. Accountability is already necessary for all those who allowed, facilitated, or protected her killers," the family stated on social media.
ABOUT THE CASE
Caruana Galizia's relatives turned to the Justice system to remove Silvio Valletta, former Deputy Commissioner of the Police of Malta and husband of Justyne Caruana, then minister of the Labour government, from the proceedings, considering that he was not impartial. It was made public that he maintained a close relationship with Fenech, to the point of traveling abroad with him while leading the investigation.
This lack of independence was compounded by alleged irregularities in the handling of evidence and continuous leaks of confidential data about the progress of the investigations, which allowed those involved to anticipate the authorities' movements for years.
The investigations point to the businessman having paid around 150,000 euros to the hitmen to carry out the attack. Months before being murdered, the journalist had uncovered the existence of an opaque company based in the United Arab Emirates, called 17 Black and linked to Fenech, allegedly used to channel illegal commissions to high-ranking officials of the Maltese Executive.
Two other people, Robert Agius, alias 'Ta Maksar', and his partner Jamie Vella, were found guilty in June 2025 for providing the explosive used in the attack. In 2022, the brothers George and Alfred Degiorgio accepted sentences of 40 years in prison after admitting that they placed and detonated the bomb, while a third implicated person, Vince Muscat, received 15 years after confessing and providing key details about the crime.
Caruana Galizia lost her life on October 16, 2017, at the age of 53, when a device exploded in her vehicle in front of her home in Bidnija. At that time, she was working on an investigation related to the Panama Papers and with alleged bribes channeled from 17 Black to shell companies controlled in Panama by the chief of staff of former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Keith Schembri, and by the then Minister of Tourism, Konrad Mizzi.
Fenech, who had been the top official of the Tumas Group and was part of the board of the company ElectroGas Malta, was arrested in November 2019 while sailing on his yacht after leaving a Maltese marina. The accusation was based on the testimony of his driver, Melvin Theuma, who admitted to having acted as an intermediary in the murder and obtained a pardon in exchange for cooperating.
The arrest of the magnate, combined with suspicions of involvement of high-ranking government officials, triggered a wave of protests across the country in December 2019 that politically cornered then-Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. The journalist had also revealed that the wife of the 'premier' was the owner of a company in Panama called Egrant.