
Caruana Galizia murder: Magistrate rules that Vince Muscat must testify against the Degiorgio brothers in the next sitting
The prosecution in the compilation of evidence against George and Alfred Degiorgio have notified the court that they will produce convicted murderer Vince Muscat as a witness

Updated at 1:20pm with magistrate's ruling on Muscat testimony
Vincent Muscat, il-Kohhu, must testify in the next sitting of the compilation of evidence against the Degiorgio brothers, who are accused of detonating the bomb which killed Daphne Caruana Galizia, a court has ruled.
Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit gave her ruling from chambers this afternoon, a few hours after hearing arguments from both prosecution and defence on whether or not this was permissible in view of the fact that her court, as the compiling court, had already sent the acts of the case back to the Criminal Court.
Stafrace Zammit noted that the court had been faced with a decree of the Criminal Court ordering the registrar to send the case back to her to hear Vincent Muscat testify.
“For this reason, in view of this fact, this court has little power to decide on objections arising from the decree other than to carry it out in its entirety,” she said.
The same could not be said of the Criminal Court when the Bill of Indictment is transmitted to it, she said. It was clear that although the Criminal Court has to pass the acts of the compilation of evidence to the presiding magistrate, it doesn’t send the acts of the Bill of Indictment, aside from the application in which the request is made.
“This shows that the Criminal Court continues to have jurisdiction to hear and decide requests made by the parties independently of whether the acts of the compilation of evidence are in its possession or in that of the compiling court.”
The court of Magistrates therefore refused the defence’s request and ordered that in the next sitting, Vincent Muscat is to testify.
George Degiorgio 55, from St Paul's Bay, known as Ic-Ciniz, Alfred Degiorgio, 53, are charged with murder and a number of charges relating to explosives.
Today's sitting was mostly procedural with a court-appointed expert saying that voice recording files that could not be accessed by the defence were re-formatted to be accessible. The court appointed a transcriber to hear the recordings and once these are done, the defence will cross-examine pardoned middleman Melvin Theuma.
The prosecution informed the court that it will produce convicted murderer Vince Muscat as a witness in the case. Muscat pleaded guilty to the charges last week and was handed down a 15-year jail term. He also gave up his right to appeal the sentence.
Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit is presiding.





























Lawyer William Cuschieri is appearing for the Degiorgio brothers.