Bomb plot accessory arrests made

VALLETTA: Three men suspected of having supplied the bomb which killed Maltese anticorruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in October 2017 were arrested yesterday, police said.

Their arrest came as a man accused of carrying out the killing agreed to a plea deal, accepting his responsibility for the assassination in return for a reduced, 15year term instead of possible life in prison.

A legal source said Vince Muscat had provided police with vital information about the case, which has shone a spotlight on corruption in the European Union’s smallest country.

Muscat and two other men were arrested in December 2017 and accused of having planned and carried out the murder. Muscat’s alleged accomplices continue to plead not guilty.

A legal source said the three men arrested yesterday were suspected of having provided the bomb and the SMS code needed to trigger it.

Caruana Galizia was killed by a car bomb police say was detonated remotely by Muscat and friends watching as she drove from her house. — Reuters