“If I knew I would have gone for $ 10 million, not $ 150,000,” he said, referring to the total euro he said was paid for killing a journalist. ..
“For me, it was just a business. Yeah. It’s a business as usual!” He told a Reuters reporter. He later added, “Of course I’m sorry.”
His admission has been several by De Giorgio’s lawyers to secure amnesty in exchange for testimony about De Giorgio’s role in the murder of Kahlua Galicia and the alleged involvement of island celebrities since 2021. Came after the attempt.
On June 22, the Malta Court of Appeals dismissed De Giorgio’s remaining legal objections to the alleged murder of De Giorgio and his brother Alfred. The judgment paved the way for the trial to proceed.
The assassination of car bombs by investigative journalists and bloggers has shocked Europe as a whole. Maltese authorities have charged De Giorgio and two other men (his brother Alfred and his companion Vince Muscat) for killing Kahlua Galicia at the request of the island’s top businessmen in October 2017. did.
De Giorgio told Reuters that he would plead guilty prior to the jury trial. “I’m going to talk to a justice of the peace,” he said. He said he would provide testimony to murder journalists and involve others in previous unrealized plots. His motive was to seek commutation for himself and Alfred, “we should not go down alone,” he said.
So far, both the Degiorgio brothers have denied involvement in the killings. Muscat was found guilty of murder in 2020 and sentenced to 15 years in prison in return for testifying about the case and other crimes.
Jogen Fennec, one of the island’s wealthiest businessmen, was also charged in November 2019 with de Giorgio and his two accomplices asking them to carry out a hit. Fenech has denied the charges, but has not yet offered his defense. In a statement, his lawyer, Gianluca Karana Karan, will prove in court that Fennec “he never wanted, actively searched for and sponsored” the assassination of Karooana Galicia. Said that.
“While protesting his innocence, Fennec argues that available evidence could lead to the arrest and arrest of the true perpetrators behind the assassination, an independent and serious investigation. is doing.”
Fennec was identified as the mastermind by taxi driver Melvin Teuma, a middleman who allegedly escaped prosecution for his role in the case in return for his testimony. Teuma said he had arranged a murder with Brother De Giorgio on behalf of Fennec. He testified that he never spoke of the identity of the De Giorgio gangster, Fennec.
In an interview, De Giorgio said he was ready to testify that top Maltese politicians tried to arrange a hit to Kahlua Galicia on another plot two years ago. De Giorgio also said he offered to testify about the involvement of two former ministers in the armed robbery.
At this stage, Reuters has not released details of these allegations or named the individuals accused by Degiorgio, all of whom have denied involvement in the crime.
The Maltese police and the prosecutor who dealt with the murder did not respond to a request for official comment on De Giorgio’s remarks.
In a further statement to Reuters through a lawyer, George and Alfred De Giorgio said, “We are seeking a judgment on admission, consistent with what has already been passed down to Vincent Muscat. Receives forgiveness. Emphasizes that justice should be given to the families of other victims. “
Karana Galicia was killed after leveling a series of allegations of corruption against prominent people, including the island’s Labor government minister. Her murder raised suspicions that some of the people she was investigating might have been involved in attempting her death.
Fenech, accused of ordering a 2017 hit, was first identified in connection with Kahlua Galicia in a November 2018 Reuters and Times of Malta article. The report nominated him as the owner of a company known as 17 Black, which Caruana Galicia claimed to have been used to bribe politicians without quoting evidence. Fenech was also responsible for the controversial power plant project in Malta.
George Degiorgio and his gang were tracking journalists throughout the summer of 2017, according to indictment evidence filed in court in multiple preliminary hearings since 2018. In her car.
De Giorgio is said to have been on a yacht on the island’s Grand Harbor when his brother Alfred, who was watching over the house, said that Caruana Galicia got into her car and got out of the car that afternoon. The prosecutor then told the court that De Giorgio sent a text message from the yacht to a mobile device that detonated the bomb.
After the car exploded, Kahlua Galicia’s son Matthew heard the blast and escaped from his family’s home, discovering his mother’s body. Since then, he has been campaigning for justice for his mother. Asked about De Giorgio’s comments, he told Reuters:
George De Giorgio, arrested two months after the murder, said nothing to police and even refused to reveal his name during the cross-examination. He remained silent until the Reuters interview. His lawyer has spent four years denying that he was involved in the murder. He also filed a series of legal oppositions to challenge the evidence against him.
However, he is now seeking an arrangement with the prosecution prior to the trial in return for admitting the prosecution and providing new information.
Alfred De Giorgio, like his brother, has been acquitted of murder but has not filed his proceedings. He also made several applications to pardon his charges in return for testifying about what he knows.
George De Giorgio said he didn’t know much about Caruana Galicia and her family, including the fact that they were ordinary people, not criminals, before getting into the hit job. “That’s it. Of course! I’ve never met her in her life,” he said.
The De Giorgio brothers have placed several bids for official amnesty for their crimes since March 2021. In the latest case filed by lawyer William Kuschieri on April 4, without revealing his name or details, De Giorgios said, “The crime of attempted violent robbery and deliberate manslaughter, one of the authors is already a minister. One is the author. ” Who is the minister? According to an official statement, the request was rejected by the Government of Malta on April 24 because of national interests and judicial administration.
Malta’s Prime Minister Robert Abela has previously denounced Degiorgios’ attempt to win an amnesty and called them “criminals” trying to buy their freedom. Cuschieri, a lawyer at Degiorgios, said the prime minister violated his right to a fair trial, and without providing details, the brothers have “direct information” about the minister’s involvement in the crime. Said.
Source: www.cnn.com
