Updated 2.10pm
The older brother of George and Alfred Degiorgio, who is facing criminal charges of money laundering and blackmail, has been granted bail.
Mario Degiorgio, 65 and from Marsa, was allowed to return home pending criminal proceedings against him following a court hearing on Wednesday which saw numerous civilians, including Melvin Theuma and Daren Debono (it-Topo), take the witness stand.
Degiorgio is suspected of being involved in laundering funds derived from criminal activity.
That suspicion still lingered in the prosecution’s mind as Wednesday's sitting drew to an end and was voiced by AG lawyer Francesco Refalo who objected to bail not only because of the gravity of the offences but also because they believed that the accused had “serious ties with his brothers’ criminality.”
His two brothers stand accused of carrying out the car bomb assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. Theuma, one of the witnesses on Wednesday, has admitted to serving as a middleman for that murder and says he also handed thousands of euro to Mario Degiorgio while the other two brothers were in prison.
Theuma testified that Mario Degiorgio would request “€5,000 at a time, to give to George’s partner to be able to travel abroad while on bail.”
The woman, Anca Adelina Pop, was also charged alongside George and Alfred Degiorgio with alleged money laundering.
“Mario would ask me for that money and it happened more than once. I gave more than once,” said Theuma, adding that he never got that money back.
Theuma told the court that he felt “trapped” when he acted as go-between to channel funds to the two Degiorgio brothers in jail.
On Wednesday, Theuma was asked about a third party mentioned to him by Degiorgio as well as Johann Cremona, a businessman with links to alleged murder conspirator Yorgen Fenech.
But Theuma could not confirm under oath that that was the same person he knew as a Marsa resident.
As Theuma walked out of the room, Daren Debono replaced him at the witness stand.
Asked by the prosecution, he confirmed that his nickname was it-Topo and that he was currently serving time in jail.
He immediately identified Mario Degiorgio, saying he knew him as they were both from Marsa. But he never had any relationship with the accused, Debono said.
Asked about Mario’s brothers, Debono said that they too were Marsa natives.
He also confirmed that Theuma was a friend of his but could not recall if he had been contacted by Theuma about something in relation to the accused.
“I don’t recall. I don't think so,” he added, ending his brief testimony.
A line of other civilian witnesses testified today, including relatives of Vincent Muscat il-Koħħu, who is currently serving a 15-year jail term after admitting to his role as a hitman in the Caruana Galizia murder.
Witnesses explained that any monies deposited for Muscat in jail were derived from family collections and hard-earned cash.
Degiorgio was represented in court on Wednesday by lawyer William Cuschieri, who renounced his brief as lawyer for George and Alfred Degiorgio last week.
The court declared that there was sufficient prima facie evidence for him to stand trial on indictment.
After retiring to chambers, Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech returned with a decree whereby she granted bail against a deposit of €15,000, a personal guarantee of €25,000, daily signing of the bail book and a curfew between 8:00pm and 7:00am.
Degiorgio was also barred from going within 100 metres of the airport or any airfield and 10 metres of the coast.
The accused was also barred from approaching any prosecution witnesses in any manner and was ordered to deposit his driving licence and seaman’s licence, if he had one.
Lawyers William Cuschieri and Lennox Vella were defence counsel. Inspectors Lianne Bonello and Christopher Ellul prosecuted, assisted by AG lawyers Francesco Refalo and Marthese Grech.
The case continues in October.