Keith Arnaud tells court ‘Degiorgio spent two whole days drinking’ after Daphne murder

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George Degiorgio ‘was always involved’

Arnaud tells court Muscat had also spoken about the 2015 murder plot to kill Caruana Galizia which never actually happened.

According to Muscat, George Degiorgio was always involved. They had begun watching her, but later abandoned the plan because they were never paid.

It was also heard in the that Robert Agius and Jamie Vella wanted to pay €1,500 a month to Vince Muscat so he would not speak to the police. They told this to Muscat’s father-in-law, Peter Brincat. This was heard in court yesterday.

Vince Muscat had told Arnaud that Alfred Degiorgio had told his lawyer he “would be better off being paid that money instead of talking to the police”.

Koħħu starts revealing new information in late 2019

On 6 December 2019, lawyer Marc Sant started representing Muscat, who then revealed a substantial amount of new information to the police. They later received information that middleman Melvin Theuma was removing items from his apartment in Marsascala. The police were panicked as they knew the recordings were in this apartment, and so they arrived and elevated the recordings.

Keith Arnaud says various sessions had taken place with Vince Muscat, and kept going till October of 2020.

Lawyer Arthur Azzopardi renounces brief

The assistant police commissioner says lawyer Arthur Azzopardi had told him that Muscat wanted to take back all the information he had told the police.

When questioned, muscat had denied this.

Later, Azzopardi had told Arnaud via an email that he was no longer representing Muscat anymore.

Later on, alleged murder mastermind Yorgen Fenech started being mentioned when Theuma had revealed that he had some recordings related to the case.

The pardon of Muscat related to the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder was rejected, but Arnaud said that he was ready to keep revealing information on the case.

Muscat had to find another lawyer as he could not keep giving information to police without a lawyer.

In the meantime, a money laundering investigation into Melvin Theuma was launched at the end of 2019. He was later arrested in relation to these investigations. That is when the recordings were shown to the police by Theuma.

Degiorgio confrontation scared Vince Muscat

Arnaud says in July 2018, it was decided that a patrol outside Muscat’s residence was to stationed. This was due to fear that Muscat’s life was in danger following his revelations to the police. Arnaud says the Degiorgio brothers had confronted Muscat on what was happening, and this made muscat fear for his life even more.

Arthur too was also feeling scared for his life, Arnaud tells the court.

Muscat further told Arnaud that he used to drive Alfred Degiorgio to a store known as “tal-gass”. According to Muscat, Theuma used to bother them to hurry the plan of the murder because his boss was pushing him.

Tyson Butcher’s Jonathan Pace murder mentioned by Arnaud

Court is back in session.

Keith Arnaud also mentions the case of Jonathan Pace, who had been charged with the attempted murder of Vince Muscat il-Koħħu. Pace used to manage the shop Tyson Butcher in Żejtun and was accused of firing six shots with a small-calibre pistol, three of which struck Muscat.

Pace, a 31-year-old from Gudja, was killed a few weeks later by multiple gunshots that hit him in the chest, back, and legs. The murder occurred while he was on the balcony of his residence at around 9:20pm in Mahatma Gandhi Street, Fgura.

A car had pulled up and several shots, likely from a machine gun, were fired from it. Arnaud says on 26 April, he had a meeting at Castille together with Attorney General Peter Grech and lawyer Arthur Azzopardi, who represented il-Koħħu in deliberations on his pardon.

Court takes a 30-minute break.

Degiorgios sought to blame Chris Cardona

Assistant Police Commissioner Keith Arnaud continues testifying. He says that Vince Muscat told police that the Degiorgio brothers had tried to blame former minister Chris Cardona with the murder since his name had been mentioned in the media on a separate case. Muscat had told Arnaud that the Degiorgios were going to say that Cardona provided a million euros so that Theuma is not mentioned.

Two whole days drinking

Arnaud testifies that Vince Muscat had provided information on a garage in Naxxar that was rented out by Robert Aguis and Jamie Vella.

Muscat also revealed that there was an instance when George Degiorgio had gone out to sea and the brothers were exchanging phone calls.

On the day of the murder, Alfred Degiorgio, who was at the look-out spot overlooking Bidnija, with Vince Muscat, called his brother and told him: “She went back inside.”

It has transpired throughout different proceedings that Daphne Caruana Galizia had exited her house but re-entered before going back out.

Vince Muscat had told police he did not hear the explosion but only saw fire.

Arnaud says that Muscat told the police that a plastic bottle filled with petrol was tied to the bomb, to ensure it reacts. Muscat also told Arnaud that after the commission of the act, Degiorgio had spent two whole days drinking.

Theuma’s name cropped up in 2018

Arnaud says that the police began investigating Melvin Theuma when his name cropped up for the first time in 2018. The police installed a security camera near a home in Marsa, which Theuma frequented constantly. This home was of Mario Degorgio, who is brother to Alfred and George—both were in custody at the time on charges that they executed the murder.

Arnaud says the camera did not provide much information but only confirmed that Theuma was in contact with the Degiorgio brothers.

Arnaud says that Theuma was once heard saying that he was on his way to Portomaso.

He further explains that when Vince Muscat and the Degorgios had gone to follow Daphne Caruana Galizia near the Phoenicia Hotel, the former told them that the Maksar brothers had procured the bomb.

Arnaud testifies that the first time he spoke to Vince Muscat was on 20 April 2018. At the time, the police didn’t know who Melvin Theuma was. They just knew he was helping the Degorgio brothers, who were in prison. Theuma was a person of interest but the police kept asking the question as to why he was helping the Degiorgios.

Vince Muscat provided the answers the police were after.

Arnaud testifies that Vince Muscat also told police how Jamie Vella had told him to be sure that the bomb will “destroy her”.

Vince Muscat wanted to talk

Keith Arnaud testifies that lawyer Arthur Azzopardi had told him that his client, Vince Muscat, known as il-Koħħu, wished to speak to the police. It was then when Muscat began speaking to the police that Melvin Theuma was mentioned. Muscat requested a pardon in exchange for information, Arnaud says.

The police officer explains in detail what Muscat had told the police about the murder. “They had bought binoculars to properly follow Daphne Caruana Galizia’s footsteps,” Arnaud says.

Arnaud interrogated Jamie Vella

Assistant Police Commissioner Keith Arnaud continues to testify. He tells the court that he had interrogated Jamie vella together with Inspector Manuel Saliba.

“Jamie Vella chose not to answer some of the questions asked to him,” Arnaud testifies.

The police officer then recounts part of the exchange he had with Vella in relation to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Arnaud: “On the day that she (Caruana Galizia) was killed, why did your mobile phone show that you were in the area?”.

Vella: “I live close to that road.”

Arnaud: “But you were there or just passing by, coincidentally just minutes before she was killed?”

Vella: “I live close to that road.”

Arnaud: “Did you know George and Alfred Degorgio?”

Vella: “I know them but I wanted to cut contact with them since they weren’t my type.”

Arnaud tells the court that Vella then told him he was very close with the Agius brothers.

Good afternoon. The court is back in session.

Court breaks for lunch

The session is suspended for lunch, and proceedings will continue at 3pm.

Degiorgios in custody: No replies, no lawyers

Six Nokia phones were elevated from the sea and a Samsung phone belonging to Alfred Degiorgio was found on land.

One of the Nokia phones found in the sea, was the mobile phone which sent the fatal SMS.

The sim card was still in the phone. On 5 December, a day after the arrest, the interrogations were made.

During interrogations, they asked them why they had killed Daphne Caruana Galizia, but neither of them answered this question and did not want to consult with a lawyer.

Degorgio obeyed the orders made by the police upon their arrest. When they arrested them, George had a mobile number written on his wrist, of his wife. Arnaud had suspected that they knew of the arrests since he had no mobile phone on him, but wrote the phone number of his wife on his wrist.

The cigarette butt found at the vantage point resulted to be Alfred Degorgio’s, Arnaud says.

Comparative analysis confirmed Maya leaving from Gran Harbour on day of the murder

A comparative analysis was done on the footage elevated from nearby cameras of the boat and on the actual boat ‘Maya’. Its distinctive features were noted and it resulted that it was in fact this particular boat caught on the cameras leaving the Grand Harbour on the day of the murder.

The searches on George, Alfred Degorgio and Vince Muscat were done in the presence of three persons. All items and electronic devices were given to Europol. Miguel Caruana confirms he had received a phone call from George to top up a certain mobile phone with €5, which was the phone sending the fatal SMS.

Searches in their residences were also carried out. The potato shed was also cordoned off. Another boat was found, registered in George Degorgio’s name.

An emergency top-up and celebratory wine

Arnaud says that Degorgio had used his personal mobile to to phone a friend working at a telecoms companies to top up another phone with €5 credit. Degorgio had realised that the mobile phone from which the killer SMS was to be sent had no credit, and so he used his personal phone to call the friend. The second phone was the one Degiorgio used to send the fatal SMS which detonated the bomb that killed Caruana Galizia. The second mobile phone was found in the sea at Marsa next to the potato shed where Degiorgio and the two others accused of complicity with the crime were arrested.

After detonating the bomb, Degiorgio sent an SMS from his personal phone to his wife asking her, “Open a bottle of wine for me, baby”.

Mobile phone data, boat activity raised suspicion on George Degiorgio

They had also preserved Caruana Galizia’s call log from her mobile phone. Vodafone had informed them that the cell tower which was usually connected to Bidnija was switched off and call activity was connected to the nearest cell tower. The last activity on her phone was at around 2pm. From the analysis of the Bidnija cell towers, it was concluded that at 2:58pm there was a Vodafone number that was disconnected from the system.   

A mobile phone usually has several call logs to many different numbers. This particular mobile phone only had activity from only one number. This raised suspicion. Police later found out it was connected to a cell tower in the limits of Valletta. This confirmed the police’s suspicion that a spotter was in Bidnija communicating with an individual who sent a message from the sea.

The two devices used were bought in November 2016 and were activated near the Żebbug Industrial Estate celltower in January 2017. These two numbers communicated exclusively with each other and the total time of communication was around 20 minutes. On 21 August  the phone was switched on again and the activity on the phones was recorded near Bidnija. However, it connected to a cell tower in Mosta because the one in Bidnija was undergoing maintenance. The final activity between these two numbers was recorded on the day of the murder, Arnaud explains. The first activity on the 16 October was at around 1:41am and was seen idle in the same place. After this, a message was sent at 2:58pm. After this, there was no more activity.

Vodafone had managed to decode the message set at 2:58pm, and it turned out to be a command to the device to tell it to do something. 

The last activity of both the mobile phones was recorded at 2:58pm on 16 october. A blast expert analysed the evidence and it resulted that the device which was installed under the driver’s seat was connected to the SIM card. One of the phone numbers was paired with the device.
 
Data from the other mobile phone showed it to be active in the areas of St Paul's Bay, Marsa and many other cell towers, suggesting the mobile number was being used at sea.

After this, police went to look for any cameras which overlooked the Grand Harbour. All footage from cameras closeby and in the Grand Harbour was taken and analysed. They noticed a certain boat named ‘Maya’ in the footage, berthed at the Marsa potato shed. The boat was registered in Alfred Degorgio’s name. They matched the activity from the mobile phones and from the footage of this particular boat. The boat was seen leaving the Grand Harbour but was not visible after it travelled outside of the visibility of the camera. However, just after 2:58 pm, the ‘Maya’ boat was seen returning in its berthing spot. After this, George Degorgio was deemed as a suspect.

Police set up 24/7 landline to collect information on Caruana Galizia murder

Court is back in session, with Arnaud testifying about the Caruana Galizia murder probe. He is telling jurors of when he arrived to the crime scene in Bidnija. The car fire had been brought under control by the time he arrived and the place was being cordoned off. PReliminary investigations suggested that the vehicle was being rented by Daphne Caruana Galizia. Arnaud spoke with her son Matthew, who confirmed that his mother was using the car. At that moment, police decided to bring in Dutch forensic experts and the FBI on the case.

Through an autopsy, the police confirmed that the victim was Daphne Caruana Galizia. They created a timeline of her movements in the run-up to her murder. It resulted that only she made use of the vehiclem but a few days before the murder, her son used it and parked it outside their Birdnija residence at around 6:30pm on the day preceding the murder. On the day of the murder, no one had used the car before the victim.  

Police also opened a 24/7 landline so that anyone with information could pass it on to police immediately.

They started dowloading footage from nearby CCTV and saved it just in case they needed to refer to it in the future and so they wont be lost due to the passing of time.  

Nearby, police noticed a rubble wall with certain bricks dismantled and on the ground. Police considered this as a possible vantage point as it allowed for a good view of the Bidnija area. There was a tree nearby, where police found a cigarette butt on the ground. Another person had also said that a suspicious vehicle was seen constantly parked in the area for the previous three weeks.

Suspended till 11:30am

The court is going on a short break till 11:30am. We will continue this live blog when proceedings resume.

Police believed More Supermarkets loan was murder motive

Arnaud explains how police investigated the motive behind the murder. They searched through Chircop's offices of Chircop and they spoke to his wife. She told them that her husband was facing three issues which she felt was of importance and interest to the police. One involved a certain Jeffrey Mallia, but a few weeks before the murder, it was resolved. Another was with Saviour Camilleri, but she said this was sorted too. She mentioned some issues with Adrian Aguis connected to More Supermarkets, specifically concerning a €600,000 sum loaned by Chircop and a hypothec on Adrian Agius's villa. Chircop was chasing after Adrian Agius for this money, according to Chircop's wife. 

One time, Chircop and his wife went to see Agius's villa, but she did not like it and told her husband not to take it. She told police she would often hear her husband arguing with Adrian Agius over the debt. Police confirmed these calls took place after analysing Chircop's mobile phone and matching this with the call data from Adrian Agius's phone. The exchanges began on 7 September and their last contact was on 5 October 2015.

Arnaud mentions that an Qormi warehouse had to be transferred to Chircop and then sold to More Supermarkets, but the promise of sale was never signed. Ryan Schembri and Etienne Cassar were the directors of More Supermarkets with Adrian Aguis. Schembri had fled from Malta earlier that year.  

After hearing this information from Chircop's wife, the police started investigating Agius. He was abroad at the time, but he arrived in Malta three days later and was arrested when he arrived. Agius had gone to the police himself when his wife told him the police came looking for him. 

Aguis confirmed with police that he was involved in the Qormi warehouse sale since he was one of the directors of More Supermarkets. The warehouse was priced at €3 million and they wanted to buy it to convert the building into offices. During his interrogation, Aguis had told Arnaud he was about to open a civil case against the lawyer to question the validity of the contract they had between them.

Aguis was later released since they did not have enough evidence to charge him with the murder. The debt seemed like a plausible motive but there was not enough evidence to connect him to the killing.

Investigator explains Birkirkara escape route

Arnaud is showing jurors the escape route taken by the car in question using stills from the CCTV. Right after the murder, the car was seen driving down Triq Carmel Brincat and Valley Road in Birkirkara and other roads such as Guze Orlando Street and the road near the Infetti sports ground. The car kept driving in parallel to Triq Notabile, near Farsons. The last time they managed to catch the car on camera was near the Fleur de Lys roundabout. In some stills, the sun visor was tilted downwards so the person inside could not be seen. Arnaud said that this sun visor was a distinctive feature, allowing them to identify this particular car from other cars of the same make and model driving on the road. 

Later, Chircop's body was taken to the mortuary and underwent an autopsy. There were eight wounds but he was hit by four fatal bullets. An x-ray was also carried out, allowing medical experts to identify two bullet heads in the victim’s body: one in the shoulder and one in the arm. In the garage, after the body was removed, police found two more projectile bullets and some fragments.

Lead investigator Keith Arnaud testifies

Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud is testifying next. He was the lead investigator on both cases.

In 2015, he was a police inspector stationed with the homicide unit. He recalls being notified of a murder in Birkirkara, which turned out to be that of Carmel Chircop. When he arrived to the site of the murder, the area was already cordoned off. He says Chircop's body was found lying on the floor of his garage with clear gunshot wounds.

He says Chircop’s son usually left home with his father, who would drive him to university, but his son’s lecture was cancelled that day so he stayed home. A certain witness had told Arnaud that on the day, at around 7am, he had heard four to five consecutive shots being fired and a car speeding off.

They began looking at nearby CCTV footage to kickstart investigations. Investigators retrieved some footage from a nearby CCTV system. Some photos of the footage are being shown to the jurors. Arnaud says that one car was of interest to investigators as it sped out of the garage complex when the shots were fired. 

In the footage, one can see a person in a clear state of panic, dialing a number and speaking on the phone. This turned out to be Augustine Grixti, the man who discovered the body.

Police asked Dutch forensic experts for help

Six Dutch experts, members of the Netherlands Forensic Institute, are testifying first. They are explaining their role in the investigations into Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder.

One expert explains that the Maltese police asked for assistance at around 5pm on 16 October, two hours after the murder.  They arrived in Malta the day after.

They had advised the Maltese police to preserve the crime scene as much as possible by cordoning off the area, and were told to ensure that no remains were touched. They drew up an investigation plan with the police and the AFM explosives and ordinance experts.

The prosecution presented certain documents compiled by them during the investigation. The victim’s mobile phone was found to the left of the car. One of the experts said that this mobile phone was seized and taken to the Netherlands for further analysis.

Good morning and welcome to today's live blog. Court reporter Maya Galea is inside the courtroom following the proceedings in the trial by jury of four men accused of murdering Daphne Caruana Galizia and Carmel Chircop.