Businessman Goes on Trial Over 2017 Assassination of Maltese Reporter

Yorgen Fenech faces trial for allegedly commissioning the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who died in a car bombing.

Businessman Goes on Trial Over 2017 Assassination of Maltese Reporter

A wealthy entrepreneur accused of orchestrating the murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia stood before a judge this week, almost a decade after she perished in a vehicle explosion.

Yorgen Fenech, whose fortune comes from energy and hospitality ventures, is charged with arranging the killing of the reporter. She had repeatedly uncovered graft at the highest levels of government in the small Mediterranean republic. Prosecutors claim Fenech wanted her silenced because she was preparing to release a damaging story about a relative of his.

Law enforcement intercepted the tycoon in 2019 while he was on his private vessel attempting to sail away from the island. He maintains he is innocent.

Five co-conspirators have previously received prison sentences for obtaining the explosives and detonating the device. Two of those imprisoned are siblings.

The slaying provoked widespread outrage and a governmental meltdown that culminated in Prime Minister Joseph Muscat stepping down three years later.

Source: TV 2

Source: Google News DK — Crime (da)