Claims made under oath by a man who admitted to murdering Daphne Caruana Galizia have raised questions about a denial former Labour minister Chris Cardona made back in 2018. 

Cardona had made headlines back then when a consortium of journalists forming part of the Daphne Project reported that patrons of a Siġġiewi bar had seen him drinking with one of the men accused of murdering Caruana Galizia. 

The story was based on the account of two witnesses who said they saw the minister at Ferdinand's bar before and after the October 16 assassination.

Cardona had denied the allegations, saying he did not recall "having any discussions with any of these individuals, and have definitely never had any meetings with them". 

Confronted with the allegations two days later, Cardona told Times of Malta that he was never at the bar at the same time as the accused men. 

But on Tuesday, giving testimony in the murder case against brothers Alfred and George Degiorgio, self-confessed murderer Vince Muscat claimed otherwise. 

Muscat recalled speaking to Cardona at a Siġġiewi bar and the politician telling him that his legal firm partner David Gatt had hidden 300g of cocaine in his office and was going to get him into trouble.

"He told me 'what has he done to me, Vince!'(X'għamilli, Ċens!)," Muscat testified about Cardona. 

Muscat, who did not name the bar in question, said the conversation predated Cardona's time as minister. Cardona served as Economy Minister between 2013 and 2020 and was also a Labour Party deputy leader between 2016 and 2020, when he quit politics.  

The self-confessed killer also testified that Cardona had thrown him a celebratory meal when he was granted bail in a separate case, claimed that the former politician was "very close" (biċċa waħda) to the Degiorgio brothers and alleged that Cardona had been involved in a "big job" with them some years before the murder.    

Cardona has yet to publicly comment on the latest developments.