Maltese businessman acquitted in Daphne Caruana Galizia murder case

A Maltese businessman has been acquitted of complicity in the murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, in a verdict delivered in Valletta. Yorgen Fenech, 44, had been on trial over the 2017 car-bomb killing that shocked Malta and drew widespread public outrage. The jury cleared him of both charges after eight hours of deliberation, according to the reported verdict.

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Fenech had denied accusations of complicity in murder and criminal association to commit murder. The jury's decision was reached by an 8-1 margin, and the courtroom reacted sharply to the outcome, with members of Fenech's family reported to have celebrated while Caruana Galizia's family wept. Her family said in a statement that the institutional failures that enabled her murder remained unaddressed and unreformed.

Caruana Galizia was killed by a car bomb in October 2017 at the age of 53. She had become internationally known for investigations into corruption, money laundering and organised crime, much of it published on her blog Running Commentary. She was also closely involved in the 2016 Panama Papers investigation, which exposed offshore structures and led to corruption allegations involving senior Maltese officials.

The case has remained one of the most closely watched criminal proceedings in Malta because of the scale of public concern around the killing and the questions it raised about accountability. In 2022, brothers George and Alfred Degiorgio were jailed for 40 years over the murder. The latest verdict does not alter the fact that the killing prompted protests and deepened scrutiny of Malta's institutions after the journalist's death.

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During the trial, the jury heard allegations that Fenech wanted Caruana Galizia killed because she was about to reveal information about him. He was described in court reporting as one of Malta's richest men and the owner of a company she had written about months before her death. He denied the accusations throughout the proceedings, and the reported verdict leaves those claims unproven in court.

What remains unclear is whether the acquittal will lead to any further legal action or renewed scrutiny of the wider circumstances surrounding the murder. The family of Caruana Galizia has said lasting justice requires preventing similar failures in future. The case continues to stand as a major test of Malta's ability to address one of the country's most serious and politically sensitive crimes.

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