Live: Melvin Theuma's friend knew ex-police chief, jurors hear
Superintendent Nicholas Vella testifies about Theuma's arrest
Jurors are hearing more evidence in the trial by jury of Yorgen Fenech, who is pleading not guilty to having commissioned Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder.
On Wednesday, the Degiorgio brothers separately claimed that the former OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri and former minister Chris Cardona were involved in the conspiracy to murder the journalist.
Alfred Degiorgio refused to elaborate on the allegations or answer further questions, prompting Judge Edwina Grima to order his arrest for contempt of court.
His brother George, meanwhile, spent hours answering questions about an earlier, aborted 2015 plot to kill Caruana Galizia but refused to answer prosecutors’ questions about the 2017 murder plan that was carried to fruition and that Fenech is on trial for.
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DNA samples
5.29pm The inspectors are testifying about a report they presented during the magisterial inquiry. At the time, their role was to gather forensic evidence from the crime scene.
They are essentially being asked to confirm on oath that they wrote the report. They also confirm that the signatures on the report belong to them.
One of the reports concerns DNA samples taken from mouth swabs of Alfred and George Degiorgio. Another report concerns a consignment of mobile phones to Europol and the Netherlands Forensic Institute.
Back in session
5.19pm The judge and jurors are back out, and so the sitting resumes. The next witnesses are Inspectors Charlo Casha and Brendan Cini, both stationed at the Forensic Science Lab.
105 months since the murder
4.59pm Thursday's court hearing is particularly emotional for the Caruana Galizia family. Exactly 105 months ago, the fatal bomb went off that killed the journalist.
Her sister, Helene Asciak, posted a tribute on Facebook to Daphne and her mother, who passed away before her killers could be brought to justice.
"Over the years, more details came out in court. My parents sat for hours and hours, days, weeks, months, years on the hard court benches, with Daphne’s killers a few steps away from them."
A 30-minute break
4.49pm The court is taking a short break before continuing to hear testimony.
Documents hidden under the kitchen hood
4.40pm The next witness is police constable Clayton Gatt, who is stationed at the Major Crimes Unit. He is testifying about documents Theuma kept hidden in the kitchen of his Marsascala residence, specifically under the hood of the kitchen stove.
He took photos of the site, then passed on the materials to Keith Arnaud.
Gatt says he went to the Bidnija site with Theuma and a colleague. While there, Theuma showed them where he used to meet with Alfred Degiorgio, as well as the viewpoint from which they monitored Caruana Galizia.
Jurors question the witness
4.18pm Vella says police received an FIAU report about Melvin Theuma in September 2018, but he doesn't know if the information was passed on to the police commissioner.
Prosecuting lawyer Godwin Cini asks whether he took Theuma's statement on November 21, 2019. Vella confirms he did so at 10.41am.
A juror asks Vella whether he knew the investigation was part of a strategy to solve the Caruana Galizia homicide.
"He was a person of interest, but the strategy wasn't obvious to us," Vella says. Arnaud had only told Vella that Theuma was a person of interest in the murder.
Another juror asks about the ice cream tub. Vella says the police rested on Theuma's word that nothing was alarming in it.
"How thorough are apartment searches?" a juror asks.
Vella says it depends on what you are looking for. If the police are searching for something in particular, then the process is far more straightforward.
"If you're looking for information on a USB, you would have to use specialised equipment that can pick up signals on electronic devices hidden within the walls."
'Lots of leaks'
3.59pm De Marco refers to a 2020 Times of Malta article that revealed Cutajar held secret meetings with Edgar Brincat.
"Were there leaks about this matter?" she asks.
"It could be... there were lots of leaks."
Brincat texted Cutajar the day before arrest
3.51pm De Marco is reading out the chats between Brincat and Cutajar. In each of them, Brincat keeps asking to call Cutajar at 5pm.
"Do you remember that the first time il-Ġojja asked to call the commissioner at 5pm, it was a day before the police arrested Melvin Theuma and il-Ġojja?" De Marco asks.
"I remember that there were chats, but I don't remember exactly when they took place," Vella responds.
Security services trusted Cutajar's explanation
3.47pm De Marco says Europol were not happy with Cutajar's explanation for the texts, citing Vella's own testimony during the magisterial inquiry.
"Europol asked, and we informed them of everything," Vella says. He says the security service was also informed of the matter.
De Marco is reading out part of Vella's previous testimony. He had said the chats between Cutajar and Ġojja were printed out and passed to the secret sevice, who then went to speak to Brincat about the matter.
The security service then gave its feedback to the police about the matter, but did not divulge what was said in their meeting with Ġojja. However, the security service was satisfied with Cutajar's explanation of events.
Using Ġojja to get to Theuma
3.34pm De Marco asks about Edgar Brincat, il-Ġojja. Vella says all his electronic devices were seized, including some belonging to his family members. Brincat's mobile was passed on to Europol officers for extractions, with the data passed back to the Maltese police.
"Was Edgar Brincat in communication with the commissioner days before his arrest?" De Marco asks.
Vella says Europol had asked about a certain mobile number found in the call logs, and he confirmed that the number belonged to Lawrence Cutajar.
He recalls that one particular text message prompted him to inform the inquiring magistrate and ask Cutajar to come down to the police depot.
"He told us he was in contact with il-Ġojja to convince Theuma to talk to the police," Vella explains.
Cutajar told them that he knew Theuma had certain recordings in his possession and that il-Ġojja was a good friend of Theuma's.
Commissioner not informed of Theuma's arrest
3.21pm De Marco asks Vella who was being kept up-to-date on the Melvin Theuma investigation.
"Me, the assistant commissioner Keith Arnaud, the police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar, and former assistant commissioner Ian Abdilla," he says.
However, Vella says that Cutajar and Abdilla had not been informed of Theuma's arrest.
Court is in session
3.10pm Judge Edwina Grima has emerged from her chambers and the jurors are back in their seats. Lawyer Giannella de Marco is going to continue cross-examining Superintendent Nicholas Vella.
Daphne vigil cancelled for first time
2.49pm A monthly vigil held since the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia has been cancelled for the first time after organisers were advised that holding it could be "misrepresented" as an attempt to influence the jury in the Yorgen Fenech trial. You can read more on that story here.
Daphne Caruana Galizia's sister pauses at the makeshift memorial before entering court last week. Photo: Jonathan BorgLunch break
1.03pm The court is taking a two-hour lunch break. We will resume our live reporting at around 3pm.
Theuma placed first in government job interview
12.58pm Vella says Theuma had attended a job interview for the phantom job, and he placed first in that interview. "All these documents were sent to Jobsplus and presented in the acts of the phantom job case," he says.
De Marco asks whether Schembri had asked Anthony Muscat, a former CEO of a government company, to hire Theuma.
Vella clarifies that Muscat told the police he received a telephone call from Schembri asking that Theuma continue receiving his salary. Muscat said he first heard from Yorgen Fenech that the cheques had stopped.
Sandro Craus captured the Castille photo
12.51pm De Marco asks whether Theuma had requested the presence of the Police Commissioner during his interrogation. Vella says he did, but he was not there when the ice cream box was opened in the interrogation room.
She also asks about Theuma's phantom job. Vella recounts Theuma's version of events: that he was called by Sandro Craus to visit Castille, and when he arrived he was invited into Keith Schembri's office, where he found Schembri and Craus sat at a table.
According to Theuma, it was Sandro Craus who took the photo of Theuma and Schembri at Castille.
Various freezing orders
12.42pm De Marco has been questioning the witness about various sums of money that were subject to the freezing order and later released. She asks about one request by Theuma to have €141,000 released, but Vella says this request has not been decided on yet.
He says there were several discussions on including an amount to be released because the amount of money mentioned in Theuma's pardon does not match other records. Vella says the police must complete its financial analysis before releasing any money.
For now, the money seized remains in the hands of the court registrar, not Melvin Theuma.
Six cars in Theuma's possession
12pm De Marco asks about the overall value of Theuma's taxis. Vella says Theuma had two taxis under his name, valued overall at around €41,000.
However, he owned six other cars, including a Kia Sportage, a Mercedes Benz, a Nissan Leaf, a Toyota Passo and a Jaguar. All these assets were subject to a freezing order.
Later in the proceedings, the Toyota Passo and Nissan Leaf were released under the condition that they could not be sold. Theuma had bought the Toyota from Edgar Brincat.
Illegal gambling operation was a family affair
11.43am Vella says Theuma had 11 properties under his direct control. Police also found three properties registered to Theuma's family members.
De Marco asks about Theuma's partner's daughter, and whether she worked a job. Vella confirms that she had no formal job but helped Theuma with bookkeeping in his illegal gambling operation.
The lawyer asks about the daughter's partner. Vella says he would also help in the operation by receiving bets and collecting money owed by clients.
Melvin Theuma walking down Strait Street in Valletta.Theuma made €22,000 a year as a taxi driver
11.26am The lawyer asks about Melvin Theuma's job history. Vella says Theuma was first registered as a taxi driver, but after he was offered the phantom job with the government, his taxi driver role was terminated.
"This doesn't mean he did not continue working as a taxi driver," he says.
Vella says Theuma declared earnings of €250,000 across 12 years, amounting to around €22,000 a year.
De Marco asks about Theuma's various properties. Vella says that Theuma held two promise-of-sale agreements on airspace at the time of his arrest, and a separate agreement for a San Ġwann apartment. He paid a €14,980 deposit on the airspace agreements and €15,900 on the apartment.
Vella mentions that Theuma had 21 documents in his possession related to various properties, but this does not mean the properties were all in his possession at the time.
Court is in session
11.19am We're back in session. Lawyer Giannella de Marco starts cross-examining Superintendent Nicholas Vella.
Chats between Edgar Brincat, Lawrence Cutajar
10.44am Police later found several chat logs between Edgar Brincat il-Ġojja and the Police Commissioner Lawrence Cutajar.
Cutajar had been asked about this in court in 2025. He responded that a request for help was an opportunity to gain information through Brincat.
Superintendent Nicholas Vella says he was not involved in any investigations concerning information leaks from the police force, since he had been assigned to the investigations against Theuma.
The court is taking a half-hour break. When the session resumes, the witness will be cross-examined by the defence team.
Phantom job investigated, but five acquitted
10.39am A separate police investigation was opened into Theuma's phantom job with the government. Five people were charged in court over this, including Yorgen Fenech and Keith Schembri, but all were acquitted after Theuma refused to testify, resulting in a lack of admissible evidence. The prosecution is appealing this decision.
Family members guilty of illegal gambling
10.35am Eventually, police charged four of Theuma's family members with illegal gambling, while Theuma was granted a presidential pardon.
The money seized during searches was exhibited in court during the magisterial inquiry and in separate criminal cases. The €132,000 in cash that was found on Theuma's partner's mother was submitted to the court, but when she later explained that the money was inherited, the sum was released.
Proceedings against Theuma's partner and her daughter have since been closed, with both being found guilty of the charges. The daughter's partner is still undergoing proceedings.
Half a million in cash at Theuma's home
10.29am Police continued to search Theuma's multiple properties. During those searches, police found two cars - a Toyota and Mercedes - in Żurrieq and a Jaguar car in a garage in Ħal Safi. Police also seized a mobile phone, various personal belongings and electronic equipment.
In a Qormi property belonging to Theuma's partner's daughter, police found €112,304.40 in cash. In Theuma's Żurrieq property, police found €550,207.70, including some cash in foreign currency.
Theuma's partner was carrying €1,900.64 in cash, while her mother was found with €132,445.
Theuma's family questioned by police
10.18am Superintendent Nicholas Vella explains that the items found in the box were later analysed by experts and placed in separate evidence bags. Europol officers also downloaded the data found on the seized items.
A day after Theuma's arrest, Vella questioned his partner, her daughter, and her daughter's partner, intending to arraign all three of them in court.
Devices, screenshots, and the infamous Castille photo
10.04am In the video we can see a plastic ice cream tub being removed from the evidence bag. In this tub, police found two Samsung mobile phones, a Philips recorder, a USB cable and three USB sticks - two red and one black.
Police also found a wad of thick papers kept together by a rubber band. When opened, the papers revealed large screenshots of chats with Yorgen Fenech and the now-infamous photo of Theuma with Keith Schembri at Castille.
The photo of Keith Schembri and Melvin Theuma that was found in the evidence box.Jurors watch footage of evidence box
9.57am Theuma eventually found a lawyer that would accompany him for his interrogation, namely Matthew Brincat, assisted by Kathleen Grima.
The box he refused to let go of throughout his arrest was opened by the police in front of Theuma. This process was filmed. In the box, police found a voice recorder, USBs, mobile phones, and papers.
Jurors are being shown a video of the box being removed from its evidence bag and opened in the presence of the police.
Police arrested Edgar Brincat
9.51am While at the police depot, Theuma was struggling to find a lawyer. Meanwhile, police informed Child Protection Services about the arrest, as both Theuma and his partner were in police custody and there was no one available to pick up their minor children from school.
Among the other people arrested on the day was Edgar Brincat, known as il-Ġojja. Superintendent Nicholas Vella says Brincat and Theuma would communicate frequently. Police searched Brincat's property, but investigations did not lead to anything of value.
Police continued to investigate the case and identify other areas of interest. Days after the arrest, police carried out further searches on properties owned by Theuma that were being rented out to third parties or family members.
Electronic devices seized
9.46am In the meantime, police entered Theuma's residence and arrested some of his family members. Theuma also agreed that his box be carried everywhere he goes, but it will be in the police's possession throughout. A court expert was also appointed to collect Theuma's devices.
A separate search in Theuma's Marsascala property led police to seize various electronic devices, including mobile phones. Police also searched a garage and found "evidence linked to illegal gaming and money laundering".
'This box is vital to me'
9.41am During his arrest, Theuma told police that he has a box that he carries with him everywhere. "I carry it everywhere because it is vital to me," Theuma said, according to the superintendent.
The police told Theuma that the box will be preserved and sealed in an evidence bag. Theuma asked for legal help, specifically from lawyers Simon Busuttil, Jason Azzopardi and Karol Aquilina. "He wanted someone from the Opposition," Vella says. He also asked to see a certain 'Arnold' from the police force - but police later assumed he was referring to Keith Arnaud.
Theuma arrested in Żurrieq
9.36am Superintendent Nicholas Vella says Theuma was carrying out illegal betting activity from a place in Marsascala, which he would visit every week. However, soon before his arrest, Vella was informed that he did not visit the site that particular week. He later received information that Theuma was preparing to move his operations elsewhere.
As a result, police decided to proceed with the arrest a few days early.
Through localisation data, police were able to identify Theuma's location on the day of the arrest. While he was in the Attard area, a police team led by Keith Arnaud went down to Theuma's Marsascala property.
Theuma was then spotted travelling towards Żurrieq, where he lived at the time. Police made their way to his residence and arrested him on the spot. They searched him, his car and his property.
Investigating Melvin Theuma
9.23am Vella is explaining his role in the money laundering investigation that led to Melvin Theuma's arrest. His job was to collect as much intelligence as possible from the tax commissioner and local banks on Theuma's financial patterns.
He says he spent almost two months investigating the allegations until the team collected enough information for Theuma to be arrested.
Vella also says the Malta Security Service supported the investigation too.
Two weeks after the investigations concluded, he requested a magisterial inquiry on the matter. The duty magistrate at the time, Gabriella Vella, appointed experts and published arrest warrants against the people under investigation.
All this culminated in Theuma's arrest in November 2019.
Court is in session
9.09am The jurors have taken their seats in the hall and the trial is back in session. The first witness is Superintendent Nicholas Vella, who already started testifying on Wednesday about the scene of the crime.
Welcome
8.51am Good morning and welcome to our live reporting of the trial by jury of Yorgen Fenech. We will be updating this space throughout the day with new developments during the session.
Proceedings are expected to start at 9am.