Reserve juror in Daphne bomb trial made thousands of online searches, court told
The man allegedly checked news sites during the first week of the trial
Updated at 4.25pm
A reserve juror disqualified from the Daphne Caruana Galizia bomb trial for possessing a tablet conducted over 3,000 online searches during the first week of proceedings, a court-appointed technical expert revealed on Thursday.
Expert Martin Bajada told the court that the tablet, which the juror was caught with on Wednesday evening in breach of strict court rules, had been used extensively between April 24 and 30, the period in which the trial began.
Among the searches, Bajada said, were visits to multiple news websites, including Times of Malta, where the juror accessed an article on April 27 containing the words “jury trial” in the headline. The juror had also browsed Newsbook on April 24, the day the trial opened, and accessed Net News. He had downloaded a guide to jury duty from the student publication Third Eye and accessed a page from MaltaPost.
While no evidence of direct communication about the trial has yet been presented, Bajada told the court he would need more time to determine whether the reserve juror had used the device to send messages or make contact via social media or other apps.
The revelation led to the suspension of the trial until Friday morning, when Bajada is tasked with presenting a full report.
Jurors and reserve jurors are prohibited from using electronic devices and can only communicate with family in the presence of court staff, in order to protect the integrity of the trial process.
The man was one of six reserve jurors selected for the trial of Robert and Adrian Agius (known as Tal-Maksar), Jamie Vella, and George Degiorgio. Two of the accused are alleged to have supplied the bomb that killed journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017. All four men also stand charged with involvement in the 2015 murder of lawyer Carmel Chircop.
The issue came to light when the man's wife contacted the court, saying: “Mr, my husband has a tablet in his possession and is trying to communicate with me. I do not want any trouble.”
Deputy registrar Joyce Agius told the court on Thursday that she spoke to the reserve juror in question after dinner. He immediately admitted to having the device and showed officials where he kept it, beneath the last drawer in the chest of drawers in his room.
The man allegedly told them that he sent messages to his wife and son, informing them about the clothes he needed and instructing his son to clean the backyard and take care of the plants in the garden.
Reserve jurors are chosen in case someone from the main jury falls ill or needs to be replaced. Nine people make up the main jury in this trial - the foreman and eight jurors.
The Criminal Court heard that the other jurors are unaware of the incident.
Madam Justice Edwina Grima told the defence “they are judges as much as me in this case and unless there is reasonable suspicion, we cannot go carrying out a search on them.”
There was another issue relating to the jurors on Thursday.
This time around, one of the jurors fell ill. A doctor took the stand and told the Criminal Court, that the juror needs three days of rest. The doctor also examined three to four other jurors, who were deemed fit to continue presiding over the trial. The Criminal Court exempted the juror in question and ordered that the first reserve juror take his place.
The jury in the case comprises three women, and six men. There were originally three female and three male reserve jurors.