The Straits Times World News
· collected 2026-09-04 · by The Straits Times
Malta's attorney general plans to appeal the acquittal of Yorgen Fenech, a top businessman charged with complicity in the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, citing unnamed sources. The acquittal was delivered by an 8-1 jury verdict, and if the appeal is filed, it would prolong one of Europe's most closely watched murder cases. Five men have been convicted of carrying out or supplying the bomb that killed Caruana Galizia in 2017, but Fenech's acquittal has left no one held responsible for ordering her murder. The attorney general has not yet officially announced its intention to appeal, which would need to be filed within 15 working days on grounds such as grave irregularity or manifest misinterpretation of the law.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Yorgen Fenech, a 44-year-old Maltese businessman, was acquitted by a jury on charges related to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, a 53-year-old investigative journalist who was killed in a car bomb attack on October 16, 2017, outside her home in Valletta, Malta. The acquittal came as a shock to Caruana Galizia's family and sparked outrage among the public. Her son, Matthew Caruana Galizia, described the verdict as "obscene" and said it went against all evidence and logic. Fenech was accused of ordering the murder, but five men have already been convicted of carrying out the killing or supplying the bomb. The acquittal has left no one held legally responsible for ordering Caruana Galizia's murder. Malta's attorney general is set to appeal the acquittal, seeking a retrial, which would prolong one of Europe's most closely watched murder cases.
Written for “Murder of a Journalist in Malta” on 2026-09-05,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
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Leaning score -0.35 for article 4308 (medium confidence, 1 verified quote) · logged 2026-09-05
Malta attorney general set to appeal acquittal in journalist murder trial
Sept 4 -
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general → set → trial
Malta's attorney general is set to appeal the acquittal of a top businessman over the murder of an anti-corruption journalist, seeking a retrial, the Times of Malta and other media reported on Friday, citing unnamed sources.
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Times → set → sources
A jury acquitted businessman Yorgen Fenech in an 8-1 verdict on charges of complicity to murder Daphne Caruana Galizia and criminal association.
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jury → acquit → Galizia
Caruana Galizia was killed by a car bomb metres from her home in 2017.
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Galizia → kill → 2017
The appeal, if filed, would prolong one of Europe's most closely watched murder cases.
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appeal → file → cases
Five men have been convicted of carrying out the killing or supplying the bomb, but the acquittal of Fenech, who prosecutors said commissioned the murder, has left no one held legally responsible for ordering it.
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prosecutors → convict → it
The attorney general's office has not yet officially declared its intention, and it could not be contacted for comment.
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it → declare → comment
The law allows 15 working days for an appeal on points of law before three judges.
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law → allow → judges
One of Caruana Galizia's sons, Matthew, said in a Facebook post that a push for a retrial “is the right thing".
"
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push → say → retrial
All branches of the state including the judiciary must not allow our country to be one in which people get away with murder," he added.
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he → include → murder
The Court of Criminal Appeal may only consider an appeal from jury trials if it considers there was a "grave irregularity during the proceedings", or if the judgment was clearly the result of a "manifest misinterpretation" or “manifestly wrong application of the law” which could have had a bearing on the verdict.
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which → consider → verdict
The grounds upon which the appeal may be filed were not disclosed.
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appeal → file → which
Observers said a potential issue concerned what prosecutors were allowed to tell jurors and what they were prevented from telling them.
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they → say → them
