A neighbour of Carmel Chircop has described how he found the lawyer lying dead in his garage doorway with two gun shots in his body.
Augustine Grixti said that Chircop's hand was cold to the touch but still moveable.
Grixti was testifying in the the compilation of evidence against four men linked to the murders of Chircop in October 8, 2015 and journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia two years later.
Adrian Agius is accused of commissioning Chircop's murder while George Degiorgio and Jamie Vella are charged with carrying out the hit. They deny the charges.
The witness was passing by the garage complex on John Borg Street, Birkirkara at around 6.55am when he met a friend, who told him they had heard four shots.
Grixti, whose garage was next door to Chircop, said he went to the complex around 15 minutes later to collect his motorbike when he spotted his neighbour's garage door was opened.
"I saw a pair of feet lying down. It wasn't normal. Was he fixing his car? I thought," he told the court on Tuesday. "I went over. Saw him face up. He had two shots, they were visible."
After calling the police, he went back to the garage, switched on the light, and touched the lawyer's hand.
"It was cold. It was still moveable," he said.
Another witness, Dr Edward Cherubino, who was called to the scene, described how the lawyer was lying on the floor with blood on his body and two visible wounds.
Other witnesses, who lived in homes opposite the complex, old the court how they heard shots, but didn't see anyone entering or leaving the complex.
The court also heard details of a €750,000 debt owed by Agius to the murder victim in connection with the sale of a warehouse in Qormi that was to be used to supply More Supermarkets.
Broker Peter Barthet described how Chircop and a Ray Grech had signed a promise of sale but Agius was also interested in buying it on behalf of the company Erom, also owned by Ryan Schembri.
A deal was struck and included a 'constitution of debt' signed in Valletta between Chircop, Agius, Schembri and his partner Etienne Cassar. The deal also included a hypothec over a villa in Baħar iċ Ċagħaq.
At the day of the signing, the debtors handed over €50,000 to make "it clear the debtors were acknowledging the debt", notary Malcolm Mangion explained.
He described the meeting as "very cordial" but added "they were there for a purpose - the lawyer wanted to secure his money."
The constitution of debt was signed in 2014 and was cancelled in 2017, two years after Chircop was murdered and the debt paid to his widow was reduced to around €100,000.
A previous hearing had heard from the lawyer's widow how Agius owed her husband €600,000 at the time.
Self-confessed hitman Vincent Muscat, who has been granted a pardon in exchange for his evidence, previously testified that he, Degiorgio and Vella were hired by Robert and Adrian Agius, known as Ta' Maksar, to carry out the killing, dumping the getaway car in a Santa Venera garage.
In court on Tuesday, the owner of a Santa Venera garage, testified how he had rented the garage to a 'Charles Cassar', which appeared to have been Muscat's false name.
A friend of Muscat's told the court that he had been acting as an unwitting go between, paying what transpired to be the rent for the garage to a man during several trips to Siġġiewi.
Robert Agius and Vella are also accused of supplying the bomb that killed Caruana Galizia in October 2017. In separate proceedings, Degiorgio is accused of carrying out the hit with two other men.
Live Blog
Sitting ends
1.29pm There are no further questions for this witness and so the magistrate defers the case until 8.30am on Wednesday.
Thanks for joining us over the last five hours. We'll have a brief summary shortly.
Lock broken
1.27pm When the lease expired, 'Cassar' extended the lease until one day, the owner found the garage empty and the lock broken.
Rent payment
1.19pm Azzopardi tracked down Cassar to the address he gave but the family who lived there said they had been there for 20 years and had not rented a garage. Azzopardi's wife went to Sliema police station to track down Cassar.
The witness said the rent was payable every six months. The owner would send a text message, Cassar would call and direct him to the Siggiewi square, where an old man would approach him and hand him money.
It wasn't always the old man who brought the money - there were others. They met at the Siggiewi square once or twice, near a field another time and once in Marsa.
"Do you identify anyone in here?" The witness shakes his head, "It only lasted five minutes."
"The lessee would direct me here and there, saying I would get the money from friends of his."
Lessee didn't pay
1.12pm The witness testifies how police asked about the garages. He gave them an overview of the tenants of the last years.
He's shown some A4 documents that contain photos of the garage complex showing different entrances.
The garages were bought in October 2011 and rented to various people. Charles Cassar rented it between 2014 and 2018 but didn't pay. Subsequently the garage was vacated and the lock on the door broken.
Sta Venera garage
1.08pm Natal Azzopardi is the next and final witness of the day, we're told. He testifies about a Sta Venera garage, one of a number owned by his company. He specialises in garages. This garage is in a block of three.
Three meetings
1.02pm The witness explains that Muscat was not with him when he went to hand over the money to the mystery driver. Muscat also never gave him an explanation for the meeting.
These Siġġiewi square meetings happened three times around five years ago, the witness says. There was around eight months between the first and second time.
The driver never spoke to the witness and just took the money and handed over a receipt.
"It was a man with a parting in his hair," he says.
Siġġiewi visit
12.56pm An elderly man named Lawrence Pace takes the oath. He says that he used frequent Hamrun square and one day Vince Muscat (the state witness in this case) came up to him. They had known each other since childhood and lived close together.
He had some errands to run and he asked Pace to go with him. They went to Siġġiewi. Muscat had some €250 in cash. He directed the witness to go to a petrol station at Siġġiewi square.
A small dark grey car drove up and he approached the car on the direction of Muscat.
"Did Ċensu send you?" he asks. The witness handed over money and the man handed over a receipt before driving off.
It's not clear if this witness' evidence is linked to the Carmel Chircop murder of the Caruana Galizia assassination.
Checking for breathing
12.54pm The officer says he recalls seeing the victim's profile, spotted blood and then tried to detect if he was breathing. There are no further questions for this witness.
Body on the floor
12.50pm When Tonna arrived at the scene, he saw Carmel Chircop on the floor. An 80s model Mercedes was in the garage and there was a bullet hole in the roof of the vehicle. As assistance was called, he went outside and looked for the empty cartridges.
Birkirkara indicent
12.47pm The officer says he was on duty on October 8 when he got a call about an incident in Birkirkara at around 7am. He was given a description of the crime scene and told that the suspects had fled.
On the way from Rabat to the scene, he got further news that it might not have been a shooting and might have been a person fixing his car, but he proceeded anyway.
Sitting resumes
12.46pm We're back and the next witness is Mark Tonna, a police officer stationed RIU in 2015.
15-minute break
12.22pm The notary has finished testifying and the court takes a short break.
Villa for €1.8 million
12.21pm The notary says the price of the sale of the Bahar ic Caghaq villa (that Agius had offered as a guarantee of Chircop's loan) was €1.8 million. Of this €1.3million was loaned by the bank and €500,000 was paid by the buyer.
From €750,000 to €100,000
12.13pm Vincent Galea, for the Chircop family, asks a few questions about the cancellation of the debt. The notary says it was cancelled on September 7, 2017. Chircop's wife and son and Adrian Agius were the parties.
In September 2017, the hypothec was cancelled. What led to this cancellation? the lawyer asks.
The notary says he wasn't involved but he knew Agius was contesting the constitution of debt.
"From €750,000, the debt was reduced to around €100,000," he says. "I was given no explanation for that amount. But it was all very calm and the parties appeared serene."
'Serene' cancellation of debt
12.12pm Asked about the later cancellation of debt, he says it was signed at the bank's office and Chircop's widow was not legally assisted. "It was all very serene," he says. "No issues"
Agius problems
12.08pm The defence asks if the notary is aware that creditors "turned on Agius" when Schembri fled the country. Agius had a problem because as well as the hypothec for the villa, there was hearsay evidence of other creditors, says the notary.
'Very cordial'
12.01pm The witness explains that the purpose of a constitution of debt is to give executive title - which can be legally enforced - over debt. Mangion confirms Agius had granted a special hypothec over the property as part of the deal.
Agius and Chricop were both "very cordial", the witness says. "They joked among themselves. But they were there for a purpose - the lawyer wanted to secure his money."
Defence cross-examines
11.57am Lawyer Alfred Abela asks the notary if the parties had discussed the option of the constitution of debt instead of substitution of rights. Mangion can't recall.
He confirms that Chircop had loaned or invested €750,000 in the company and wished to "crystallize that amount". Regarding the €50,000 payment, he explains it was "done to make it clear that the debtors were acknowledging the debt".
More Supermarkets
11.53am The notary says the More Supermarkets deal was "the talk of the town" at the time. His client had asked him to check Ryan Schembri's accounts and there didn't appear to be any trouble with payments. "Business was good," Mangion says, "They were investing money with a good return."
The witness presents a copy of three deeds.
11.50am The witness says that he wasn't the notary Chircop would usually use. He describes the lawyer's mood on the day of the signing of the constitution of debt.
"He appeared agitated and anxious to get it over and done with," he says.
Property sold later
11.45am Mangion says that, after the murder, Agius had sold the property to a third party. On the same day at APS bank, Chircop's widow was paid and the hypothec - the right over a debtor's property - was cancelled on the villa.
Investment in Erom
11.41am Mangion elaborates, explaining that the loan was to be Chircop's investment in Erom and the services he offered.
There was some difficulty on the day of the signing, because not all parties could attend the noon meeting, with others attending later. On questioning, Mangion can not recall if Cassar met them or arrived later.
The Valletta office was used by Schembri's lawyer, Mangion adds.
The debt
11.35am Notary Malcolm Mangion is up next. He tells the court he has been practising from his Luqa office since 2005. He is asked to testify about a deal concerning Adrian Agius and the murder of Carmel Chircop.
He knew Chircop through notarial work. Chircop asked him to draw up a constitution of debt. The notary met Chircop, Ryan Schembri, Adrian Agius and others at a legal office at Valletta.
Other co-guarantors, like Chircop's wife, came to sign later in the evening.
Ryan Schembri and Adrian Agius declared that they were debtors of Chircop for €750,000. Erom was made the debtor company.
That sum was the amount lent by Chircop previously to the debtors. They did not indicate what the loan was for. On the day of the contract it was said that the first €50,000 had already been handed over, Mangion testifies.
'A fine businessman'
11.32am The witness says his relationship with Adrian Agius was good and that they had known each other for a long time.
"So would you say that Adrian was a fine businessman, a gentleman?" he is asked.
"Definitely".
That's all from the witness.
'No animosity between victim and Agius'
11.26am The witness says there was no anger from Chircop directed towards Agius. It was all towards Ryan Schembri.
"In fact he once even told me that Adrian had been duped by Schembri too." Meanwhile, he described Etienne Cassar as a "pupazz" (a toy).
Agreement in detail
11.24am Lawyer Alfred Abela cross examines the witness. He asks him to take him through the agreement - the promises of sale and the right of substitution.
The witness explains that a prospective buyer cedes his rights to another party who steps in as a buyer on the final deed. In Chircop's case, however, this was done by a constitution of debt, and it was the first time in his eight years as a broker, that the witness had come across this practice.
Chircop had explained to him that he "wanted to break away from More" and "didn't want to have anything to do with More".
Abela asks what happens on the day of the final deed. The witness says that money is handed over on that final deed.
Debt collector
11.22am At one point Chircop had asked the witness if he knew a debt collector.
'Chircop felt duped'
11.16am When the promise of sale fell through, Adrian Agius "bore the brunt", the witness says.
The witness sought legal advice from his lawyer, Delia, because he needed some material evidence to present at the bank. The broker had a problem when he didn't get money on the Qormi deal.
Carmel Chircop told the witness he was prepared "to nail them", those who had guaranteed the loan. Chricop felt upset because he felt duped and his anger was mainly directed at Ryan Schembri.
'Great respect for Adrian'
11.15am Barthet says that he told Chircop that there were other parties interested in the place but the lawyer had insisted that the property go to them.
"He had great respect towards Adrian and his family, apparently," he said.
A villa for payment
11.11am Barthet is asked about the €700,000-€800,000 debt. "Who owed it to Chircop". Barthet says the constitution of debt was signed by EROM and guaranteed by Etienne Cassar, Ryan Schembri and Adrian Agius.
Adrian Agius told the witness that he had even offered Chircop a property, a villa, as payment.
The witness had no contact with Etienne and Ryan left Malta.
A letter to get paid
11.09am The witness says Adrian Agius was a client he "handled carefully". He generated business. The witness had spoken to his lawyer at the time, Adrian Delia, who suggested sending a letter to get paid.
€700,000 - €800,000 in debt
11.04am Chircop told the witness that after the constitution of debt, he was not paid. He said there was some €700,000 - €800,000 pending.
Communication problems
11am The Attorney General lawyer takes over questioning. The witness repeats the people who viewed the store. Etienne Cassar was introduced as the storekeeper but the witness later found out he was Schembri's partner.
The witness says that he communicated mostly with Adrian Agius. "And I think that sometimes he, too, felt at a loss over Ryan Schembri. They would agree one way, then Schembri would do otherwise."
The agreement was signed before notary Malcolm Mangoin. They were to retain the basement at a fee of €10,000 a month until the final deed.
By right, the broker was to get paid on the day of the promise of sale, but he did not insist.
'Ryan Schembri called the shots'
10.52am Inspector Arnaud takes up questioning. Barthet identifies Adrian Agius. The witness says he initially thought the 4000sqm warehouse was for Agius but it became clear that "Ryan Schembri called the shots".
At the first meeting, Agius said he needed to show it to others 'tal-More' and at the second meeting Schembri was there with an accountant, Etienne Cassar, Carmel Chircop and Adrian Agius.
Constitution of debt
10.47am The property was to be purchased under peaceful possession, but it turned out that there was a compliance issue on the place, Barthet explains. The matter was ironed out in court.
The broker was introduced to Adrian. At the deed with EROM, a new promise of sale between EROM and Bonnici was concluded. It was a constitution of debt. Barthet says Chircop got some bills of exchange.
EROM paid a deposit of €50,000 kept by the notary and an upfront payment of some €50,000 or €60,000 to Chircop. There were to be other payments over a period of six months.
Barthet says that Ryan Schembri refused to give him a copy of the agreement. "it doesn't concern you." As broker, Barthet was to get a payment from Chircop and a commission from the other party.
But the final sale as never signed because Ryan Schembri left Malta.
EROM and MORE
10.42am The witness says he dealt mostly with Adrian Agius. Barthet says it was difficult to set up an appointment with Schembri and that he was prone to changing his mind. But ultimately a deal was struck.
They met at Vincenti Buildings, in Valletta around 2014.
He mentions EROM, the other company Agius owned, which he said was MORE spelt backwards.
More supermarkets
10.40am Barthet continues testifying. Adrian Agius viewed the place with Chircop, Ryan Schembri and Etienne Cassar. They liked it and said they wanted it to supply More Supermarkets.
Schembri planned to open 20 other supermarkets in Malta and also traded meat for export.
Warehouse wanted by Chircop and Agius
10.35am The warehouse is in Qormi and was intended for a bottling plant, which never materialised. At one point Arriva were interested in the place but changed their mind because a permit for a diesel pump was not granted.
Barthet got a call from Carmel Chircop and met him on site. Chircop seemed interested. The pair had previously ment on an earlier deal on a Buskett farmhouse that fell through.
This was round 2011. Chircop came to view it with Ray Grech, who was in a hurry to take the property. He was in the meat industry and wanted to expand operations.
They signed a promise of sale. But the agent called to say that she had another interested buyer with cash in hand. This was Adrian Agius.
Warehouse
10.33am Peter Barthet is the next witness. He describes being asked by police about a particular warehouse or store. He was the broker involved and police wanted some details on the property.
Case resumes
10.30am We're back after a break. The four men are in the dock and the magistrate is in her position.
Keith Schembri hospitalised
10.26am Also in court today is the money laundering case against Keith Schembri, the former prime minister's chief of staff. But Schembri himself isn't there as he has been hospitalised with what sources say is a serious condition.
Our colleagues Ivan Martin and Herman Grech are covering the case here.
Degiorgio pardon request
10.16am Meanwhile, some news connected to the Caruana Galizia case. The alleged hitmen George and Alfred Degiorgio have filed two court applications after their request for pardon was rejected last month.
In the first, a constitutional case, they claim they have suffered a breach of their right to a fair hearing because of the way their pardon request was handled.
They have also filed another case to challenge Cabinet's decision. We'll have a full report later on this.
Short break
10.07am The witness says that when Vella decided to move out, she allowed him time to clear out his possession. The key was handed back to her by Vella or a friend, the witness cannot remember which. That's all from this witness.
The magistrate calls for a fifteen-minute break.
Place leased in October 2015
10.02am The witness describes the property. It is a ground floor, two bedroom, corner maisonette with an inner courtyard and it's accessible through the garage complex below.
He leased the place around October 2015 and kept it for over a year. It was rented through agents.
"An agent had called her about a couple with two kids. At the viewing, it was not a couple but Jamie Vella."
The witness identifies Vella in court. She describes how he would call her and meet her somewhere to pay the rent. Alternatively she would collect it at the appartment block.
After a year, Vella said he wanted to stay longer and she agreed.
Jamie Vella's flat
9.58am The next witness, Ruth Chircop, takes the stand. Arnaud and the Attorney General's lawyer prepare questions.
She says that she recently got a call from police about a property at Sta Venera. A maisonette part of an apartment complex.
She is asked about a particular rent.
Back then the lessee was Jamie Vella, the man accused of being involved in the murder. He took up the property close to the last quarter of 2015 and stayed there for a year or so.
Arnaud questions witness
9.51am Inspector Arnaud asks some questions. The witness is asked about the view from her balcony. She says she saw no cars coming or going.
"It was a big sound that woke us up," she says. The couple looked in the direction of the sound, which happened around 7 or 7.05am.
She says there are three or four floors in the complex and a level underground. She knows this because they once spoke to the owner.
That's all from this witness.
'Not even a second'
9.47am The couple went back to the bedroom. Her husband got dressed and went to work.
When he went to the balcony door, he met a neighbour. They discussed the matter, and came to the conclusion someone was hitting the door, she says.
She adds that the sounds were in close succession, not even a second between them.
Later that day she spoke to police.
'We thought they had hit the door'
9.41am Maria Camilleri Paygi testifies next, in English, because she is a Hungarian national. The other witnesses have testifed in Maltese. She says that she had a day off work that day. She remembers it was a weekday but can't remember the month. She was in the bedroom between 7 and 7.05am when she heard three sounds after each other.
"We thought they had hit the door," she says. She knocks on the witness stand to mimic the sounds. "We thought they had hit the door, the garage door."
She and her husband got up very fast and ran to the balcony door, where they could see the garage door where the incident happened. Her husband was in front of her.
The entrance was "quite big" with a ramp, she says, adding that the gate was never closed.
She tells the court she could see the garage but did not see anyone entering or leaving.
'Shots in video games'
9.35am Inspector Arnaud asks about the entrances to the garage complex. The witness says there's an entrance in the alley, which is very narrow and difficult to manoeuvre. This exit is at St Paul alley and leads to an exit near the Birkirkara police staiotn.
He says he was in his bedroom overlooking the street and has just woken up. The window was shut and the door to the room was closed too.
Lawyer Alfred Abela, representing the Agius brothers, asks the witness if he is a weapons enthusiast.
Camilleri says that today he holds a shooting licence.
"Back then I thought the sounds were similar to shots in video games."
Saw no-one
9.32am The witness continues. He says the shots were in slow succession.
He went outside to look some five minutes later. He looked around for around five minutes, asking himself where the shots might have come from. Half an hour later he heard the sound of police cars.
On questioning, he tells the court that he saw no one entering or leaving the garage complex.
'They were firearm sounds'
9.26am Next to take the oath is Clive Camilleri, who lives in Birkirkara.
He says he was in bed in his home opposite the garage complex when he heard shots. He doesn't recall the exact time - it was very early, between 7 and 8am.
It wasn't an explosion. He tries to mimic the sound.
"I immediately realised they were firearm sounds. They were not rapid," he says.
He was about 20 metres away.
Doctor takes the stand
9.23am Doctor Edward Cherubino is the next witness. He was stationed in Mosta in 2015 and got a call just before 8am, alerting him to the Birkirkara shooting.
He went to John Borg Street, which was closed off. He went into the garage with police and came across the victim, wearing a suit, with a bag in his left hand.
He was certified dead. It was Carmel Chircop, lying on the floor with blood on his body and two visible wounds centre right. One finger was slightly grazed.
Repeating testimony
09.20am There's a discussion between the magistrate and the prosecution. She urges the prosecution not to repeat testimony, to make the best use of time.
The prosecution responds, saying they witnesses such as the man who found the dead lawyer, were worth hearing in the compilation.
Witness steps down
09.17am That's all from this witness.
The body of Carmel Chircop is removed from a Birkirkara garage, where he was shot dead in 2015. Photo: Mark Zammit CordinaUnlocked gate
09.15am Grixti describes the garage complex. The outer gate was never locked. It was remote operated but hadn't been working since 2014 - a year before the murder. It had been hit in an accident, and hadn't locked since.
Number 46 was the first door on the left, entering from the ramp.
The other two entrances were a pedestrian entrance on same street, which was also always open, and another entrance facing Riebu Alley. Only this last entrance was locked.
Pistol shots
09.11am Questioned by Inspector Keith Arnaud, Grixti confirms an Emanuel Camilleri had told him he had heard shots earlier on. Pistol shots. This was around 6.55am.
He repeats the location of the wounds on the victim. The lawyer was wearing a white shirt with an under vest. Grixti saw two holes in the material.
Grixti had returned to the garage at around 7.10am.
'His hand was cold'
09.08am An emotional Grixti describes calling the police. In the panic, he gave them the wrong address. Meanwhile he went back to the garage, switched on the light, and touched the lawyer's hand. "It was cold. It was still moveable," he says.
He was then escorted to the depot to give a statement, was taken to hospital and later testified at the magisterial inquiry.
'I saw a pair of feet lying down'
09.04am The witness' garage is adjacent to Chircop's, he explains: numbers 45 and 46. The complex had three entrances. One was in an ally, one had a ramp and another one was for pedestrians.
"When I entered, I spotted the door to number 46 open. I used to see the lawyer some four times a day.
"The door was four-leaf. One leaf was open, the one with the lock. I saw a pair of feet lying down. It wasn't normal. Was he fixing his car? I thought."
He describes calling Chircop from about a metre away.
"I went over. Saw him face up. He had two shots. They were visible."
Four shots
09.02am Grixti tells the court that he was passing by the garage complex on John Borg Street at around 6.55am on October 8, 2015, when he met a friend who told him they had heard four shots.
Grixti went home without giving it much thought, then he returned to the complex to take out his motorcycle to head for work.
First witness
08.58am Augustine Grixti, from Birkirkara is the first witness. He came across the dead body of lawyer Carmel Chircop.
Accused arrive
08.55am All four accused take their places at the dock. The magistrate enters and takes her place too.
Who's who
Here are some of the key courtroom players.
- Robert Agius, Adrian Agius, Jamie Vella, and George Degiorgio face various charges related to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia and Carmel Chircop. They are in the dock today;
- Vincent Muscat has admitted his role in both murders and has turned state witness;
- William Cuschieri is appearing for George Degiorgio;
- Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo is presiding over the case;
- Lawyer Anthony Vella and George Camilleri are representing the Attorney General while, Superintendent Keith Arnaud and Inspectors Shawn Pawney and Wayne Camilleri are prosecuting;
- Vince Galea is appearing for the Chircop family;
- Alfred Abela is representing the Agius brothers;
- Marc Sant is representing Muscat;
- Jason Azzopardi is the lawyer for the Caruana Galizia family.