Chamber to investigate lawyer who offered Times journalist cash

The Chamber of Advocates is to investigate the conduct of a member of Yorgen Fenech’s legal team attempted to hand some €1,000 to a Times of Malta journalist at the end of a meeting, the newspaper said.

Journalist Ivan Martin rejected between two and four €500 notes when they were physically handed to him by lawyer Gianluca Caruana Curran towards the end of a meeting.

The lawyer is one of the team defending the businessman charged with complicity in the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia in October 2017. 

The Chamber said the allegations made against the lawyer were very serious and shall be asking the Committee for Advocates and Legal Procurators, a sub-committee of the Commission for the Administration of Justice, to investigate the alleged conduct.

Martin said that at the end of the 20-minute meeting in Valletta, also attended by lawyer Charles Mercieca, Caruana Curran handed over the folded €500 notes.

Caruana Curran has admitted that “remuneration was offered”. 

Martin said: “I cannot be sure how many notes he handed as I didn't unfold them. I handed them back to him and told him I couldn't accept payment.  I also informed them that I only get paid from Times of Malta, and that he should not do that again going forward.”

In a lengthy statement on Monday night, Caruana Curran said: “Ivan Martin led us to understand that we could use his services to help neutralise the bias in the reporting in the media. We are obviously not privy to his contract or terms of employment within the Times of Malta. It was only after he was offered remuneration for his services, that he mentioned that he was full time with the Times of Malta.”

Martin said he was first approached by Charles Mercieca to meet to discuss the case. He also denied telling the lawyers that “the Times was totally under the control of the Caruana Galizia family”.

Caruana Curran said Martin “wanted dirt” on people connected to the case. But the journalist said Fenech’s defence team offered him information about certain individuals and that he asked for more details about their claims.

The lawyers said tey had received an unsolicited draft of an article alleging corruption by the ex-commissioner Lawrence Cutajar. Martin said the text  was sent to confirm details of information which Fenech’s legal team had provided during a previous meeting.

“He led us to understand that we could use his services to help neutralise the bias in the reporting in the media. We are obviously not privy to his contract or terms of employment within the Times of Malta. It was only after he was offered remuneration for his services, that he mentioned that he was full time with the Times of Malta,” the lawyer said.

The Times of Malta said it was clear that Martin describes himself online as a ‘Times of Malta reporter’ and Fenech’s legal team has itself linked meeting Martin to Times of Malta reporting. “Times of Malta does not accept payment for news stories and Martin acted correctly by immediately informing his news editor about Caruana Curran’s offer of cash.”

Caruana Galizia lawyer says action must be taken against Fenech defence

Daphne Caruana Galizia family lawyer Jason Azzopardi has called for action to be taken against Yorgen Fenech’s defence by the Commission for Administration of Justice.

“Yorgen Fenech thinks he can bribe everyone. He is wrong,” Azzopardi said.