The Maltese prime minister office's ex-chief of staff, Keith Schembri, has been detained as part of the probe into the high-profile murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, Times of Malta reported on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th November, 2019) The Maltese prime minister office's ex-chief of staff, Keith Schembri, has been detained as part of the probe into the high-profile murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, Times of Malta reported on Wednesday.Schembri resigned on Tuesday. The same day, he was brought in for police questioning over his alleged ties to Maltese businessman Yorgen Fenech, who was arrested last week on suspicion of involvement in the journalist murder.
According to the newspaper, investigators have 48 hours to question the former senior official without pressing charges. Afterward, he is either to be charged or released.
Apart from Schembri, the police also detained Adrian Vella, a doctor of businessman Fenech, the newspaper said. Vella is suspected of being a go-between for Schembri and Fenech.
Caruana Galizia was killed by a car bomb outside her Bidnija home in October 2017. The journalist was known for her investigations into alleged cases of corruption in Malta based on the so-called Panama papers, which revealed illegal finance practices of officials and public figures from various countries. She also claimed that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and his wide were linked to a company mentioned in the Panama Papers.
Fenech, the director of energy generating company Electrogas, in turn, is said to have run a Dubai-based firm called 17 Black that made payments to companies in Panama reportedly owned by Schembri and former Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi.
