George Degiorgio’s former partner Anca Adelina Pop has been convicted of money laundering after a court of appeal noted that she owned luxury vehicles and had substantial deposits while ostensibly being unemployed.

Pop was found guilty by a court of appeal that also confirmed guilty verdicts and jail sentences for George and Alfred Degiorgio.

The brothers, who are also serving separate jail sentences of 40 years each after admitting to assassinating journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, had four-year jail terms for money laundering confirmed.

Pop had initially been acquitted of the charges but the Attorney General appealed, arguing that there was enough evidence to convict her.

The Court of Criminal Appeal, presided over by Madam Justice Edwina Grima, agreed.

Pop was ostensibly unemployed but had cash deposits “in round figures” amounting to thousands of euros into her sole bank account. She spent significant sums on clothes and shoes, and between May 2013 and January 2018 transferred €38,450.50 out of Malta, mainly to her mother.

She also received €22,000 from her partner at the time, George.

George and Alfred Degiorgio were found guilty of money laundering after a court found that they had produced “no plausible or lawful explanation” for the assets accumulated when their only source of income were social benefits.

Although Pop registered with Jobsplus as self-employed, she testified in 2021 that she had not worked for five or six years. She was not registered for tax purposes.

Transport Malta information showed that a Corvette C7, an Audi Q7S and a Mercedes Benz were registered in her name.

The court observed that in terms of money laundering legislation it was sufficient for a person to be “suspected” of having property of criminal origin to be found guilty.

The onus was therefore on Pop to prove that her assets came from legitimate sources.

Her partner, George Degiorgio, had had various brushes with the law and was also found guilty of a journalist’s murder.

Given that Pop lived with him, she must have suspected that her partner’s wealth came from an illegitimate source, the court said, especially given that he never had a regular job and no other legitimate source of wealth.  

The court deemed Pop’s explanation about her possessions to be contradictory.

She claimed that her father supported her financially yet at the same time, said that she wired money to her family in her homeland to help her father build a home.

She also insisted that her father helped her financially but “conveniently” never mentioned that her partner gave her money, even when she was abroad.

When all was considered, the court revoked Pop’s acquittal and declared her guilty of money laundering, condemning her to an 18-month jail term suspended for two years as well as a €22,000 fine.

She was also ordered to pay one-third share of court expenses totalling €841.90, previously shared by the Degiorgios alone.

All the woman’s property, both movable and immovable, was to be confiscated in favour of government.

Lawyers Noel Bianco and Leslie Cuschieri were counsel to the Degiorgios. Lawyer Roberto Montalto was counsel to Pop.