VALLETTA — Yorgen Fenech's trial for involvement in the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia began on a Wednesday in Valletta. Fenech denies all charges against him.

Fenech faces charges of complicity in the voluntary homicide of Caruana Galizia and association with persons intending to commit a crime in Malta. The attorney general requested a life sentence for the murder charge and 20 to 30 years for the criminal association charge. A jury was sworn in at the courts of justice in Valletta on the morning the trial began.

Daphne Caruana Galizia, a magazine publisher, newspaper columnist, and blogger, died in a car-bomb attack on October 17, 2017. Her car swerved off the road into a field near Bidnija shortly before 3 p.m. that day. A bomb, contained in a children's shoebox, had been placed under the driver's seat. Prosecutors state that the bombers were paid €150,000 to carry out the attack.

Melvin Theuma claims Fenech ordered and paid for the killing. Theuma was arrested on November 14, 2019, possessing USB drives containing copies of covertly recorded conversations with Fenech. Theuma's lawyers sent the recorded material to Europol's offices in The Hague for safekeeping on the night of his arrest.

Then-Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced on November 19, 2019, that Theuma had been offered a presidential pardon and immunity from prosecution in exchange for information about the killing. In the early hours of November 20, 2019, Fenech boarded his yacht, Gio. The Maltese military intercepted the yacht and forced it back to harbour, where Fenech was arrested. Muscat resigned as Prime Minister in December 2019.

Five of the six other men prosecuted in relation to the murder were convicted, while one received a pardon in exchange for testimony. Vincent Muscat pleaded guilty to all charges, including wilful homicide, and testified against the Degiorgio brothers, receiving a reduced sentence of 15 years and a presidential pardon. George and Alfred Degiorgio changed their pleas to guilty on the first day of their trial in October 2022; a plea bargain reduced their sentences from life to 40 years. Robert Agius and Jamie Vella were sentenced to life in prison in June 2025 for supplying the bomb and are not eligible for parole or any other form of early release. Melvin Theuma has been living under a witness protection scheme since 2019.

A public inquiry concluded that the Maltese state allowed an atmosphere of impunity to spread from the highest level of government to regulators and the police. The inquiry stated this atmosphere led to a collapse in the rule of law and created a favourable climate for Caruana Galizia's murder.

Fenech was granted bail in February 2025. He paid an €80,000 deposit and pledged a €120,000 personal guarantee. Additionally, Fenech's aunt provided her shareholding in Tumas Group, valued at approximately €50 million, as security for his bail.