George Degiorgio called Malta’s judicial system “corrupt” in an angry courtroom outburst before his murder trial on Friday, claiming prosecutors know who killed Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Degiorgo and his brother Alfred stand jointly charged with assassinating Caruana Galizia in a car bomb in October 2017.
But the brothers claim that their trial cannot go ahead because they are being inadequately represented by two legal aid lawyers assigned to them 40 days ago.
Their original lawyer, William Cuschieri, quit the case in August and the brothers have been unable to find another lawyer to represent them, leading the court to assign legal aid representatives Simon Micallef Stafrace and Martin Farrugia to serve as their defendants.
Hunger strike
Alfred Degiorgio has since gone on hunger strike to protest the state of affairs and appeared frail on Friday, seated in a wheelchair, covered with a white blanket and with what appeared to be an IV line attached to his arm.
The court ordered that a doctor and nurse be assigned to keep watch over him 24 hours a day.
“You know who killed Daphne. Those who were rubbing shoulders with you.”- George Degiorgio
His brother George, however, was in a more combative mood, and let loose in a courtroom outburst shortly before the start of proceedings on Friday.
“You two are not prepared,” he said loudly of his two lawyers. “Give us a defence and we’ll put on a defence with balls,” he said. “You allow this, Mr Attorney General?” Degiorgio asked, presumably to deputy attorney general Philip Galea Farrugia, who is leading the prosecution.
“You know who killed Daphne. Those who were rubbing shoulders with you.”
The murder accused then turned his ire towards the Caruana Galizia family’s legal defence team, made up of Therese Comodini Cachia and Jason Azzopardi.
Both are former PN MPs.
“And the PN too, they forgot us from PN stamperija,” he said. “What a mess of a place. The courts are corrupt. Corrupt judges too.”
Degiorgio reiterated his lack of faith in his two lawyers, telling them “you two are not prepared, you declared it. Is the media here? Put it all down and publish this!”
He ended his outburst with a tone of resignation. “She’s going to start, I know,” he said of the judge who was not in the courtroom at the time of his outburst.
“Perhaps we’ll meet in hell.”