Day 8 of Yorgen Fenech Murder Trial: Neighbours Recall Suspicious Cars Near Caruana Galizia's Home

Witnesses described a white rental car and silver Peugeot parked near Daphne Caruana Galizia's home in the weeks before her 2017 assassination. The trial continues before Madam Justice Edwina Grima in Valletta.

Neighbours Recount Suspicious Vehicles Parked Near Bidnija in Weeks Before Assassination

The eighth day of Yorgen Fenech's murder trial resumed at the Valletta law courts on Tuesday, with Lovin Malta reporting live from the proceedings before Madam Justice Edwina Grima. Forensic specialists, emergency responders, and local residents were among the witnesses called to testify over the killing of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Resident recalls white rental car parked repeatedly near her home

Maria Sammut Grech, a resident of the Tarġa Gap area, told the court she had noticed a small white rental car parked close to her home on multiple occasions in the weeks before Caruana Galizia's assassination. She said she never saw anyone inside the vehicle. On one occasion, she also recalled a grey or silver car parked further down the road, with two men inside it.

Sammut Grech said she could see the general area where Caruana Galizia's home was located, though not clearly. She told the court that police approached local residents the day after the explosion and that she had not noticed any suspicious vehicles following the blast. Under cross-examination, she acknowledged she had never reported the white car to police at the time, as she had not considered it suspicious enough. She later said she felt she should have done so.

Neighbour describes 'dishevelled' man sitting inside parked car

Wallace Sammut, another Tarġa Gap resident, told the court that police contacted him the day after the murder to ask what vehicles he had seen in the area. In the weeks before the assassination, he said he had repeatedly noticed a small white Hyundai rental car parked for extended periods on a rough road near his home — a vehicle he described as appearing out of place. He said he had once seen a man inside it, a person in his forties who looked "dishevelled."

Before the white car began appearing, Sammut said he had also noticed a larger silver Peugeot parked in the same location on several occasions, sometimes blocking the road. He estimated he saw it four or five times in the weeks before Caruana Galizia's death. He told the court he lived less than 100 metres from where the vehicles had been parked.

On the day of the assassination, Sammut said he heard a sound at around 3pm but did not initially attach significance to it. Only after seeing police and emergency vehicles arrive in the area did he realise something serious had occurred. He added that the white car had been parked outside his home that morning but was gone by the afternoon.

During cross-examination, the defence pressed Sammut on the specifics of what he personally observed, including whether he had ever seen police patrols in the area — which he said he had not. The jury asked whether he had seen the cars during evening hours. Sammut explained that he would not have been able to say, as he had a broken leg at the time and did not go outside at night.

First responders describe arriving at the Bidnija explosion scene

Police Constable Mario Farrugia, who was with the Rapid Intervention Unit at the time, told the court that officers were alerted at approximately 3pm about a vehicle on fire in a field in Bidnija. On arrival, members of the Civil Protection Department were already extinguishing the blaze. He said officers could not approach the remains of the car closely at that stage.

Farrugia recalled two men engaged in what appeared to be a heated exchange further up the road, though the situation quickly settled. Before the area was sealed off, a pick-up truck passed through the scene. Farrugia said he stopped and searched the vehicle after the driver explained he owned a nearby field; nothing illegal or suspicious was found. No cross-examination was requested.

Sergeant Suzanne Mifsud, now stationed with the Gender-Based Violence Unit in Mtarfa, told the court she was on duty at Mosta police station between noon and 8pm when she received a call about a car on fire. At the scene, she observed the vehicle's remains and human remains. She recalled speaking to a man named Mario Vella, who said he had gone to the area after being informed by his daughter about the burning car.

Mifsud said an argument broke out at the scene between Vella and Matthew Caruana Galizia, Daphne's son, over allegations that Vella had photographed the scene. Vella claimed his phone was damaged during the confrontation. Mifsud said she filed a report on the incident, which was presented to the court. No cross-examination was sought.

Retired PC Ruben Balzan also testified, saying he had received a radio alert about a car fire in Bidnija while stationed at Ta' Kandja. He said officers later realised it was an explosion and remained at the scene for approximately an hour and a half until forensic teams arrived. PC Rodrick Vassallo also gave evidence about the altercation at the scene between Matthew Caruana Galizia and Mario Vella. Neither witness was cross-examined.

Europol expert faces questions on scope of digital analysis

Earlier in the morning session, defence lawyer Giannella De Marco continued cross-examining Europol expert Marius van der Meer, focusing on the boundaries of his analysis and references to "possible instigators" in his report.

Van der Meer confirmed he did not personally extract the data but instead analysed material recovered by digital forensic specialists from Caruana Galizia's phone, a cloned SIM card, and her cloud accounts. He reiterated that his analysis covered only English-language material due to a language barrier, and that Maltese-language communications were left to other investigators. The defence then turned to seven investigative scenarios identified in the report, with Van der Meer confirming these were intended to provide structured analytical frameworks for the investigation.

Source: Lovin Malta