George Degiorgio, who along with his brother Alfred and an associate, Vince Muscat, have been charged with the murder of Caruana Galizia in Malta in October 2017, also said he would implicate others in the plot to kill her. “If I had known, I would have gone for 10 meters. Not 150,000,” Degiorgio said, referring to the euro amount allegedly paid to carry out the murder, in an interview with Reuters for Who Killed Daphne? podcast. “For me it was just work. Yes. Business as usual.” He later added: “Of course I’m sorry.” Degiorgio said he did not know much about Caruana Galizia or her family before agreeing to participate in her murder, and did not know they were ordinary people and not criminals. “Of course,” he said, “I never met her in her life.” Degiorgio’s admission came after several attempts by his lawyers to secure him a pardon in exchange for testifying about his role in the murder of Caruana Galizia and other alleged crimes involving prominent figures on the island. Last month, Malta’s appeals court rejected Degiorgio’s remaining legal appeals against the murder charges against him and his brother, clearing the way for a trial. Degiorgio told Reuters he would plead guilty before any jury trial and indicated he would testify to implicate others in the killing and an earlier unsolved plot to kill the journalist. His motivation, he said, was to seek a reduced sentence for himself and Alfred and to ensure “we don’t go down alone.” Daphne Caruana Galizia was killed in Malta in October 2017. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters Until now, both Degiorgio brothers had denied involvement in the murder. Muscat pleaded guilty to murder charges in 2020 and received a reduced 15-year prison sentence in exchange for testifying in the third case and some other crimes. Alfred Degiorgio pleaded not guilty to the murder charges but did not present his case. He has also filed multiple plea bargains in exchange for testifying about what he knows. In a statement provided to Reuters on Tuesday afternoon, the Degiorgio brothers said they would seek a deal similar to the one reached by Muscat, adding: “We are willing to disclose everything we know about other murders, bombs and crimes, provided that we will receive grace. . We emphasize that the families of the other victims should also be brought to justice.” One of the island’s richest businessmen, Yorgen Fenech, was also accused in November 2019 of instructing Degiorgio and his two accomplices to carry out the hit. Fenech has denied the charges but has yet to enter his defence. His lawyer, Gianluca Caruana Curran, said in a statement that Fenech planned to prove in court “at no point did he seek, actively seek or support” Caruana Galizia’s murder. He added: “While strongly protesting his innocence, Mr Fenech maintains that with the available evidence, independent and serious investigations can lead to the arrest and conviction of the real perpetrators behind the murder.” In the interview, Degiorgio said he was willing to testify that a top Maltese political figure had tried to arrange a hit on Caruana Galizia in a separate plot two years earlier. Degiorgio also said he would offer to testify about the involvement of two senior former ministers in an armed robbery. Maltese police and prosecutors handling the murder case did not respond to requests for official comment on Degiorgio’s statements. Caruana Galizia was murdered after making a series of corruption allegations against prominent people, including ministers in the island’s Labor Party government. Her murder raised suspicions that some of the people she was investigating could be involved in plotting her death. Asked about Degiorgio’s comments, Caruana Galizia’s son Matthew said: “George Degiorgio’s own words show that he is an incredible murderer who deserves no parole.” Reuters contributed to this report
