Daphne’s family accuses minister of harming police investigation, warns of legal action

The husband and sons of murdered journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia have accused Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia of harming the ongoing murder investigations by divulging confidential information publicly.

In a legal letter sent to Farrugia on 28 November, the Caruana Galizias, through their lawyers warned:

“My family and I are prepared to use all legal means at our disposal to ensure that you and the Government you represent are not permitted to sabotage either the magisterial inquiry or the police investigation, which according to law must be independent, impartial and expedient.”

Caruana Galizia was brutally murdered after the car she was driving was blown up just meters away from her Bidnija resident on 16 October.

The family expressed dismay that Farrugia, as minister responsible for the police force, responded to a parliamentary question where he said, “I am also informed that the magistrate has access to certain personal items which belonged to Daphne Caruana Galizia.”

The Caruana Galizia family cautioned that this reply was in breach of law and wrote, “it is not in the public interest that the items of evidence available or not available to the police and to the inquiring magistrate be named or that the existence of any evidence be publicly acknowledged unless there is an overriding need, for example for allowing the public to identify a suspect at large – and in that case it will fall on the police force to communicate that need through their community and media relations unit, and not via your ministerial office.”

The family wrote that communicating confidential information are in breach of Articles 2 and 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and more than that, “it has serious implications for you personally were you to have consciously or not sabotaged the investigation.”

Article 135 of the criminal code was also cited, “as a person vested with public authority, on having hindered the execution og the law, you shall, on conviction, be liable to imprisonment for up to three years.”

They went on to remind the minister that divulging information obtained by a police man by virtue of the functions of their office is an ethical breach.

“We trust that the next time a member of the force communicates such information to you, you will instead file a complaint of breach of confidence with the police commissioner in order to initiate disciplinary proceedings, rather than relaying it to the world.”

Many media stories have surfaced regarding alleged details of the murder investigation through unknown sources.

The Caruana Galizia’s wrote that they expect an internal investigation to be launched by the police over leaked information coming from members of the police force.

Government statement

Reacting, the government said the sentence the family objected to related to “information that was already in the public domain, after the Court granted the application made by the Institute of Maltese Journalists on 30th October 2017.”

“In the letter, Minister Farrugia is being threatened with criminal legal action that may lead to 5 years imprisonment and a fine of thousands of Euros.

“The letter interferes with his Ministerial and Parliamentary responsibilities, that can even be considered as a breach of parliamentary privilege,” the ministry said.

“Minister Michael Farrugia considers that all claims interpreted in the letter; which similar claims do not seem to have been addressed against Dr Busuttil’s question, as unfounded and he reserves the right to take all steps to protect his Ministerial and Parliamentary duties.

“In the meantime, Minister Farrugia continues to respect where possible the family’s wishes.”