Żeppi l-Ħafi dead at 71

Joseph Fenech, known as “Żeppi l-Ħafi” died on Friday at the age of 71.

Fenech became a well-known figure in 1996 after receiving a presidential pardon for his involvement in the attempted murder of Richard Cachia Caruana.

At the time, Cachia Caruana was the personal assistant to then Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami.

Fenech had served as one of Fenech Adami’s bodyguards during the 1980s. The pardon was granted by former President Ugo Mifsud Bonnici on the recommendation of Fenech Adami, on the condition that Żeppi l-Ħafi cooperate with investigators and testify in court.

Although he gave evidence, his testimony was insufficient to convict of Meinrad Calleja, whom he had identified as the alleged mastermind behind the assassination plot.

In 2009, Fenech successfully invoked the presidential pardon to have two additional pending cases relating to cocaine trafficking and burglary dismissed, along with the attempted murder case.

He was later acquitted of fraud charges linked to a failed property deal in Burmarrad in 2010. Two years later, he was also cleared of charges of damaging a vehicle and causing minor injuries to a man during an altercation in 2010.