A judge has ordered Jason Azzopardi to delete Facebook posts concerning Yorgen Fenech, who is accused of involvement in the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

During a pre-trial hearing on Thursday, Madam Justice Edwina Grima raised concerns that public comments could undermine the judicial process. 

Azzopardi, a lawyer representing the Caruana Galizia family, had shared posts and an interview on his social media account, which Fenech's defence claimed were prejudicial. 

Fenech's legal team argued that the posts risked influencing the jury ahead of the trial. They requested the court's intervention and the issue was the focus of Thursday's sitting.

Judge confronts Azzopardi

The judge asked Azzopardi to take the witness stand to explain the comments and confirm whether he had uploaded three Facebook posts related to the case.

Azzopardi admitted to posting them but claimed he had not been formally notified about an additional court filing from Fenech's legal team regarding the posts. 

“I want to know if those posts are still on your Facebook page,” Justice Grima insisted.

When Azzopardi could not locate one of the posts, he was shown printed copies by the defence, and confirmed they were uploaded by him. 

Tensions rose when Azzopardi suggested he was being treated unfairly. 

“Don’t speak to me about discrimination," Justice Grima replied firmly, before reiterating the importance of a previous court order banning any reference to Fenech’s request for a presidential pardon.

If that court order was breached, whether in court or outside, then “any court decision would be in vain. We’d be wasting time," she warned.

“The court is very upset… you’re not realising what this means to these proceedings… The court might consider continuing these proceedings behind closed doors."

Azzopardi argued that one of the posts pre-dated that court order. Two more recent posts were not uploaded after the last court decree about the Lovin Malta interview. 

But Charles Mercieca, for the defence, insisted that the dates on those posts spoke for themselves.

Azzopardi mumbled something in court, which was inaudible to reporters. 

“There! He’s just breached court orders again. Right here in court!” said Mercieca, pointing at the lawyer across the hall. 

The judge had had enough. 

Standing up and gathering her papers, she sternly ordered the parties’ lawyers to follow her in chambers. 

A few minutes later, all re-emerged and the judge minuted the way forward. 

She ordered Azzopardi to immediately remove the posts exhibited in court and further ordered that no party was to make reference in public about “the guilt or otherwise of the accused who was to date an innocent person, so as not to stultify the judicial process.”

Finally, the court ordered the media not to publish what Azzopardi had read out from those Facebook posts in court today, because “that would be rubbing salt in the wound”.

The court reminded all about the importance of the ban on publication it had issued about documents in the case file.

That was intended so that future members of the jury at Fenech’s trial would not be compromised and that was for the best administration of justice.