Keith Schembri to face criminal charges after probe into Caruana Galizia murder leaks

Keith Schembri will face charges connected to a five-year investigation into leaks from the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder investigation.

Lawyer Jason Azzopardi said on Friday that criminal charges have been issued against several people, including Schembri, in connection to the leaks. He said the first hearing will take place next Wednesday.

MaltaToday has independently confirmed that Schembri will be arraigned next week on charges related to perjury and breaching the Official Secrets Act.

Authorities started the investigation after Yorgen Fenech, who is awaiting trial on charges that he masterminded Caruana Galizia’s murder, claimed that he received information on the investigation through Schembri.

READ ALSO: Keith Schembri was Yorgen Fenech’s informant on progress of Caruana Galizia murder investigation, court hears

In December 2019, pardoned middleman Melvin Theuma told a court that Fenech had named Keith Schembri as the person informing him.

Earlier this year, Judge Lawrence Mintoff, who was presiding over a case instituted by Fenech to try and remove the lead investigator from the Caruana Galizia case, issued a damning ruling and said that Schembri would attend briefings at Castille on the murder, even when Theuma’s pardon request was being discussed, without disclosing his friendship with Yorgen Fenech. This continued even after Fenech became a suspect and his mobile phone was tapped by the Security Services.

Mintoff was also critical of Schembri’s appointment as chief of staff in the Office of the Prime Minister. He questioned whether Schembri’s personal interests would take the upper hand and prevail over the public interest given his wide-ranging contacts with the business world.