Maksar gang trial: Defence lawyers slam Chircop murder probe, cast more doubt on Vince Muscat

Session's over

That's all for today. The court will be back in session tomorrow morning, and we will be back to report on the proceedings. Thank you for following today's session with us.

Cuschieri claims Muscat traded Chircop murder info for pardon by dangling Daphne bomb lead

Now Cuschieri is speculating as to how Vince Muscat reached the decision to start talking about the Carmel Chircop murder. He says the lead investigators on the case were clearly interested in who supplied the bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia. According to Cuschieri, Muscat used this to his benefit. He says Muscat decided  to entice the investigators with this information in exchange for a pardon on the Carmel Chircop murder, regardless of whether the information is true or not. 

Cuschieri questions legitimacy of €3 million warehouse deal at centre of Chircop-Agius dispute

Cuschieri is talking about the promise of sale on an Qormi warehouse at the centre of the financial deal between Chircop and Agius. Chircop was due to earn €700,000 from a promise of sale on an Qormi warehouse to the More Supermarkets directors. The sale was for €3 million. The warehouse had to be transferred to Chircop and then sold to More Supermarkets, but the promise of sale was never signed. 

Cuschieri suggests that not everything was above board with this deal. The property broker involved in this deal had testified in court that Chircop visited the warehouse with a certain Ray Grech, with whom they had a meat importation business. A preliminary agreement was drawn up between the two to initiate the purchase process for the warehouse. Later, Grech packed out of the deal but Chircop persisted.

Cuschieri says it doesn’t make sense for Grech to have randomly lost interest in the deal. “Could it be that Chircop went ahead with the deal, signing a constitution of debt behind Grech’s back? Could it be that the constitution of debt, which consisted of the profit, was taken illicitly by Chircop and his wife?”

“Could there have been disagreement on this substantial amount? This is a contract of €3 million with an intended profit of €700,000. Can we really take it for granted that everything was above board?

Cuschieri says chief officers ‘contributed little’ to probe

Cuschieri lists several police officers that were called to the scene on the day of the crime. These included Assistant Commissioners Silvio Valletta and Martin Sammut, among others. According to Cuschieri, it seems that these police officers contributed little to the investigation, and so the brunt of the work fell on Sandra Zammit from the Birkirkara district police unit and Keith Arnaud from the homicide squad. 

“Unfortunately, Arnaud didn’t fulfil his obligations to the best of his abilities, in my humble opinion,” he said.  

Cuschieri casts doubt on getaway car ID

Cuschieri is pulling up CCTV stills of what police suspected was the getaway car in the Carmel Chircop murder. The still shows a red school van followed by a silver car. Between the two is a dark grey, almost black car.  Police had said this was the car used to carry out the murder. However, Muscat had told the court that the car they used was a different colour. He didn’t recognise the colour of the car, but the lawyer says he was supposedly able to remember the escape route after the murder. 

“How can be verify the most important detail of the case when one person is saying it’s one colour, and another person says it’s a different colour?”

Back in session

Break's over. Leslie Cuschieri is continuing his case in favour of his client, George Degiorgio. 

Court on break till 4:45pm

The court is taking another short break. We will continue with our reporting when the court is back in session.

‘A shortcuts investigation’

Cuschieri is describing the probe as a “short cuts investigation”. He says that if the car identified by police was the one used by the killers, then the killers managed to get themselves into position in record time, around five minutes. 

He is walking the jurors through the CCTV footage, mentioning timestamps and moments when other cars could be seen driving around the area. 

Cuschieri questions CCTV evidence, accuses police of tunnel vision in Chircop murder case

Cuschieri is now criticising the court-appointed expert who collected the CCTV footage from the area around Rampol buildings. According to Cuschieri, the expert only collected footage from cameras along Triq John Borg and the route taken by the suspected getaway car. “Why didn’t he collect footage from the area around the site? Such as from the small alley near the Rampol buildings ramp."

The lawyer is also criticising the police for picking on one car that entered and exited the complex, when other cars were seen entering. “They picked on this car, why couldn’t they look at the cars that exited before?”

Lawyer slams ‘sloppy’ Chircop murder probe, contrasts it with Caruana Galizia investigation

Cuschieri compares the investigation into the Carmel Chircop murder with that of Daphne Caruana Galizia. He says the latter was meticulous but the same can’t be said for the Carmel Chircop investigation.

“In the Caruana Galizia probe, police found cigarette butts 150 metres away from the site of the explosion. It was collected and a DNA profile was written up from it. Meanwhile in the Chircop probe, cigarettes were found 10 metres away. The DNA profile was shelved. Is this how these things are supposed to happen?

Defence highlights lack of forensic evidence linking accused to crimes

Cuschieri argues that there is no forensic evidence linking those in the dock with the crimes they are accused of. He says that it was during Arnaud’s testimony that one of the defence lawyers asked if there is any scientific link between the evidence collected by foreign experts and the accused. At the time, Arnaud said there wasn’t but the evidence was still helpful in leading police to the accused. 

During that same testimony, it was one of the jurors who also asked Arnaud whether there was any forensic evidence connecting the accused with the crimes. “I don’t know if you noticed, but at that moment, Arnaud turned bright red,” he says.

Lawyer warns jurors to ignore media, focus solely on courtroom evidence

Cuschieri tells the jurors that they should base their decisions only on the evidence that has been brought in front of them by the court. When they come to deciding their verdict, they should do so based on the evidence shown to them throughout the jury, as opposed to what they might have heard in the media or through small talk.

“If you let yourself be influenced by things outside the court, then you are not good jurors. That’s why you’re not being allowed home, because you might be influenced by things happening outside the courtroom,” he explains. 

“When it comes to deciding on a jury, and you let things influence what you heard in the courtroom, it could be difficult to remember what’s backed up by proof and what’s gossip from the other side.” 

He says this is why there is usually a long waiting period between the moment of the crime and the jury itself.  He explains the legal procedures of criminal cases, such as the preservation of evidence by an inquiring magistrate. “These things take time.”

Lawyer tells jurors to avoid bias

George Degiorgio has already pleaded guilty to his role in the Daphne Caruana Galizia murder. In this case, he is being charged with murdering Carmel Chircop.

Cuschieri mentions the case of Jonathan Pace, who had been charged with the attempted murder of Vince Muscat. 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 was killed a few weeks later by multiple gunshots that hit him in the chest, back, and legs. 

The prosecution isn’t pleased with this being mentioned. After a bit of ruckus from the legal teams, the judge tells Cuschieri to be careful with his words to the jurors.

Assistant Commissioner Keith Arnaud testified briefly about this case during the trial. 

Cuschieri says these stories could result in bias, but the prosecution disapproves of this comment too. The judge again cautions Cuschieri.

Back in session

The session has resumed. Now, it's Leslie Cuschieri's turn to convince the jurors that the evidence brought against his client, George Degiorgio, is not up to standard.

Court on break till 2:30pm

The session is being suspended for two hours. After this, the lawyer Leslie Cuschieri will deliver his arguments to jurors in favour of his client, George Degiorgio. We will continue with this live blog when the sitting resumes.

Lawyer closes his case

Mifsud is closing his argument. After listing some more inaccuracies in Muscat's testimony, his final point to jurors is to make sure they are morally convinced by the evidence handed to them. 

“When making your decision, you need to have all the tools. I believe the tools simply aren’t there,” he says. 

Mifsud says the Attorney General presented Vince Muscat as a witness without the proper evidence to corroborate what he was saying. 

“Vince Muscat is not credible. Muscat is ready to lie to get what he wants,” he says.

Mifsud points out that the only accusation against Adrian Agius is that he commissioned the hit on Carmel Chircop.

“Let’s send a message: when you investigate a case, you have to investigate it in full.

Muscat gets car details confused

Mifsud is recalling Muscat’s testimony  about a reconnaissance outing with George Degiorgio and Adrian Agius to spy on Carmel Chircop while he was having lunch at the Birgu waterfront.

First, Mifsud suggests it would be strange for Adrian Agius to willingly spy on Carmel Chircop during the day with the people he allegedly paid for the murder. 

Second, Mifsud says Muscat’s testimony is again contradictory on the details of this outing. At first, Muscat testified that they drove to Birgu with Adrian Agius’s car. Later, he told the court that they drove there with his own car.

“He’s getting confused even on these basic details,” Mifsud says.

Conflicting evidence on Degiorgio’s yacht

Mifsud turns to George Degiorgio’s yacht, the Maya. He points out that Vince Muscat told the court that Alfred Degiorgio was in prison when his brother George bought the boat. Yet on paper, the boat was registered to Alfred Degiorgio. His signature appears on the ownership documents, Mifsud says. This, he suggests, throws more doubt on Muscat’s testimony.

Lawyer: AG should not have rested case on debt

Mifsud is still arguing against the debt as a clear motive for the murder. He says Agius could not have rid himself of the debt by killing Carmel Chircop because it would have been inherited by the rest of his family. “It’s immensely disappointing that the Attorney General rested their case on this fact alone,” he says. 

He also tells jurors to go back to Mary Rose Chircop’s testimony to confirm that she never saw her husband and Agius arguing heatedly about the deal. 

Carmel Chircop wasn't present for constitution of debt, lawyer says

The sitting has resumed. Mifsud is talking about the constitution of debt that underpinned the deal between Chircop and the More Supermarkets directors, including Agius. 

He explains that a constitution of debt is a document that puts in writing a pre-existing debt between the debtor and creditor. However, Mifsud says that neither Carmel Chircop nor his wife were present when the constitution of debt was signed by the parties in front of a notary. 

Mifsud says Agius opened a civil case against the Chircop family because he felt that this problem could result in the contract being ruled as null and void. 

Break till 11am

The court is taking a short half-hour break. We will continue this live blog when the sitting resumes.

Agius's out-of-court settlement clears him, lawyer says

The prosecution’s proposed motive for the murder was clear: Adrian Agius was indebted to Carmel Chircop, and wanted to get him off his back. Mifsud is now trying to downplay the debt and convince jurors that the motive is not strong enough. 

Chircop had loaned the directors of More Supermarkets €750,000. Adrian Agius appeared as a debtor on the contract.

Mifsud says Agius opened a civil case against the Chircop family after the murder in the hopes of declaring the contract null and void. “You don’t open a civil case for fun. You do it because you think you could win.”

He says Agius first offered a garage, but when the family said they’re not interested in property, Agius and the family settled on a €165,000 out-of-court payment. “Agius could have walked away with zero, but he paid them instead.”

Meanwhile, according to Mifsud, the family also reached an agreement with Jeffrey John Mallia, but it was Mallia who got his way in the settlement.

Lawyer says Muscat's poor memory could lead to miscarriage of justice

Mifsud is saying that Muscat’s uncertainty during the crime scene visits with jurors is enough to question his credibility as a witness. According to Mifsud, when Muscat was taken to the area in Santa Venera to identify the place they kept the stolen getaway car for the murder, his memory faltered. He told police he couldn’t understand where in Santa Venera they were and even failed to recognise the garage where the car was allegedly kept. 

Mifsud is also referring to the car itself. The court had appointed an expert to identify the car model from CCTV footage, but Muscat could not recognise the car either. “This could lead to a miscarriage of justice if he can’t even recognise the car,” he says.

‘Police should have investigated Jeffrey Mallia properly’

Mifsud is trying to shift suspicion on Jeffrey John Mallia. Chircop was involved in a business deal with Mallia before his death. Issues cropped up with this deal, but Chircop’s son had testified in court that that these issues were eventually resolved. 

Mifsud reminds jurors that Mallia had submitted a criminal report against Chircop over this deal. 

He says the police should have investigated this in more detail. Earlier in the trial, police officials told jurors that Agius was considered a stronger suspect because Chircop’s wife mentioned the deal as a major concern to her husband before his death. However, the lawyer says this is not a strong enough reason to suspect Agius alone without investigating Mallia with more rigour.

“Let’s say I own a shop. An employee takes €10 from the cash register, and so I fire him. A week later, the cash register is stolen. When police ask about possible suspects, I tell them about this employee. However, the employee stealing €10 from me does not mean he is the culprit. It’s the police’s job to investigate.”

Chircop probe lacked diligence, lawyer says

Mifsud is suggesting that the probe into Chircop’s murder wasn’t carried out with the same diligence and energy as in the Caruana Galizia murder, which involved experts from the Netherlands Forensic Institute and the FBI. 

“We don’t have the tools in hand to corroborate the main points. There are gaps. That’s the truth,” he tells jurors. 

He also says that Muscat’s was inconsistent when testifying about his client. 

On the preservation of evidence, Mifsud is criticising the police for securing the garage where Chircop was murdered but not the entries and exits of the Rampol garage complex. In earlier testimony, police officials said they secured the main ramp and cordoned off the road, but the defence team suggested there were other exits that the police did not notice.

Good morning and welcome to today's live blog. We are in court following the trial by jury of four men accused of murdering lawyer Carmel Chircop and journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Right now, the defence team is making its case in favour of their clients. It's Nicholas Mifsud's turn to defend his client, Adrian Agius. So far, the gist of his speech to the jurors is that a presidential pardon in favour of Vince Muscat does not mean he is a credible witness. 

Muscat was granted a presidential pardon to tell all about the Carmel Chircop murder. According to his testimony, he was in the getaway car with Jamie Vella and George Degiorgio when Vella shot at Chircop.