Two brothers on Friday admitted killing Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, hours after telling a court that they were not guilty of her murder.
The trial of Alfred and George Degiorgio had been expected to last for some time but, in a dramatic twist, they agreed to plead guilty in exchange for more lenient sentences.
Caruana Galizia, a journalist and blogger who was a thorn in the side of many Maltese politicians, was killed by a car bomb near her home in October 2017.
The Degiorgios were arrested and charged with the murder in December 2017 along with an associate, Vince Muscat. Yorgen Fenech, a prominent Maltese businessman, was charged in November 2019 with commissioning the hit.
In February 2021, Muscat was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Fenech is yet to stand trial and denies the charges.
In an interview with Reuters from his jail cell in July, George Degiorgio said he intended to plead guilty and would implicate others he said were involved in the murder. Before the interview, Degiorgio and his brother had always denied involvement in the murder.
George Degiorgio also said he would have asked for more money if he had known more about Caruana Galizia. “If I knew, I would have gone for €10 million, not €150,000,” he said in the interview.
In court on Friday, Alfred Degiorgio, who has been on hunger strike, appeared frail and was seated in a wheelchair and covered with a white blanket, according to the Times of Malta.
How brother, however, was in a combative mood, slamming his own court-appointed lawyers by saying: “You two are not prepared … Give us a defense and we’ll put on a defense with balls.” The brothers’ original lawyer quit the case in August. He also yelled out to the court: “Perhaps we’ll meet in hell.”
