Cold Open

It’s 2 PM, on October 16th, 2017, in Bidnija, on the island of Malta in the Mediterranean.

29-year-old journalist Matthew Caruana Galizia smiles as his mother places a plate of tomatoes and mozzarella in front of him. He’s about to dig in when… the phone rings. Matthew glances up, but his mother answers it before he can move. So, Matthew goes back to his food.

Matthew’s just starting out in a journalism career, but he has an excellent role model to inspire him. His mother is Daphne Caruana Galizia - Malta’s most prominent investigative reporter. Matthew’s helping her with research on her latest story, digging into an international scandal that reaches right into the heart of Malta's government.

When Daphne’s finished her phone call, she tells Matthew that she needs to head out on an errand.

She grabs her keys and bag, kisses her son on the head, and tells Matthew she won’t be long.

But after only a few moments of scrolling - a loud explosion rattles the windows. Matthew jumps up and rushes to the door.

Lying in a field at the side of the road is the wreckage of a car, consumed in flames, his mother's car. But the fire is so ferocious that Matthew can’t get close. And with terror rising in him, Matthew realizes that there’s no way she could have survived the blast and no way to help her even if she did.

The explosion that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia was no accident. The investigation into her murder will soon shine a spotlight on the corruption in Malta and tarnish the reputation of the island’s most powerful politicians. Those who planted the car bomb hoped to silence Daphne. But instead, reporters around the world will be inspired to show that good journalism can’t be killed and that Daphne’s legacy will continue long after the attack that claimed her life on October 16th, 2017.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is October 16th, 2017: The Assassination of Journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Act One

It’s October 1984, in the town of Sliema, Malta, 33 years before Daphne Caruana Galizia’s death.

19-year-old Daphne stands shoulder to shoulder with other protesters, chanting at the top of her voice, as a row of Maltese police officers glares at them.

For the past ten years, Malta’s education system has been in a steady decline. Many parents have chosen to withdraw their children from state-run schools and send them to Church schools instead. But recently, the government launched a crackdown on Church schools and announced plans to control what they can teach. This resulted in teachers going on strike—and today, Daphne and some of her fellow college students have joined them on the picket line in solidarity.

Daphne links arms with the person next to her. It’s been a peaceful demonstration so far, but there’s tension in the air. Daphne can see movement behind the police lines, and she senses they’re about to try to disperse the protesters.

Over the next few minutes, the police line creeps closer and closer. Then, the officers simultaneously rush forward.

As several of them swing their batons to break the protesters’ line, one officer grabs hold of Daphne. She twists away, trying to break free from his grip, but he’s too strong. Daphne screams for help, and several friends step in. They pull Daphne from the officer, and she scrambles away to safety.

Then, Daphne and her friends flee into the side streets. But Daphne doesn’t escape the law for long. A few days later, police officers arrive at her house. They’ve identified her as one of the protesters, and there’s a warrant out for her arrest.

Daphne is taken to a police station, and there she’s questioned by Inspector Anglu Farrugia, and Daphne listens with disbelief as she’s charged with assault. The police officer who grabbed Daphne has accused her of attacking him. And over the next 27 hours, Daphne is repeatedly questioned without a lawyer present. Eventually, Daphne is worn down, and  signs a confession—even though she knows she didn’t do what she’s accused of.

After her release, Daphne is called to court. But now that she’s had a chance to process what's happened, Daphne is sure that Inspector Farrugia used illegal methods when he questioned her. She explains her side of the story to the magistrate—and thankfully, he believes her. The case is dismissed, and Inspector Farrugia is criticized for the way he coerced Daphne into a false confession. After this incident, Daphne becomes determined to never allow the authorities to walk over her like that again.

And three years later, Daphne gets a job at the Sunday Times of Malta. At first, Daphne writes about all aspects of life on the island. But what she really wants to tackle is corruption in politics, shady business, and even organized crime. And as she gains experience and confidence, Daphne gets her chance. But writing about big topics makes Daphne some big enemies.

In 1996, after reporting on a drug trafficking case, Daphne arrives home to a horrifying sight. Her dog is dead on the doorstep, its throat cut. Ten years later, in 2006, a pile of tires is set aflame next to Daphne’s home. Daphne knows it’s an attempt to intimidate her into silence, but it doesn’t work. And instead, she decides to expand her work even further.

In March 2008, Daphne writes the first article for a new investigative journalism blog that she calls Running Commentary. Thanks to her fearless reputation for breaking big stories, the blog grows quickly, and soon, it has over 400,000 followers from all over the world.

With no editor to hold Daphne back, nothing is off-limits in her blog. In 2010, Daphne publishes a piece about her arrest to quarter-century prior in 1984, and how a confession was coerced from her by Inspector Anglu Farrugia. In the years since Farrugia has embarked on a career in politics and is now the deputy leader of Malta’s ruling party. Farrugia responds by suing Daphne for libel, and he wins his case in court—but Daphne still refuses to take the blog post down.

Daphne gets into more trouble in 2013. The day before a general election in Malta, Daphne shares videos that question incumbent Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s fitness to lead. Her post breaches a Maltese law that prohibits political commentary on the day before an election, and Daphne is arrested again—but not convicted.

But not content to just take aim at the Maltese government, Daphne’s fearless pursuit of the truth will see her go international. She’ll join forces with a confederation of investigative journalists around the world to uncover a major scandal—but it’s a story that Daphne won’t live to see to its conclusion.

Act Two

It's February 22nd, 2016, in Bidnija, Malta, 20 months before Daphne Caruana Galizia is assassinated.

Daphne, now 51 years old, sits at her computer, her fingers dancing across the keys. She’s writing another blog post, but this entry is different. It’s far shorter than usual containing only a cryptic message about the business dealings of Konrad Mizzi, Malta’s Minister of Energy and Health. Daphne signs off that there’s more to come, but that she can’t share the full details just yet.

Daphne sits back and reads through the post one more time. Then satisfied, she clicks the button and publishes. She wishes she could write more, but she’s not the only person involved in the story. Her piece about Konrad Mizzi is just one part of a much bigger scoop.

A year ago, an anonymous source at a Panamanian law firm got in touch with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. This anonymous source had possession of 11 million documents relating to the law firm’s offshore banking operations. They revealed details of how politicians, celebrities, and high-profile criminals all across the world had evaded scrutiny by illegally holding their wealth behind shell corporations. Daphne was one of over a hundred journalists from 80 countries who were invited to examine the documents, but she was sworn to secrecy until they’d all finished their research. Now, it’s almost time for the reporters to simultaneously publish the results of their investigations—and Daphne can’t wait to reveal the Maltese politicians who are named in the files.

But with her short blog post, Daphne has inadvertently tipped off one of the targets of her investigation. Konrad Mizzi tries to get ahead of the story and issues a statement confirming that he has a secret overseas trust fund to manage his family assets but declines to give any more details.

Five weeks later, Daphne is given the green light to publish her story in full. And on the same day that journalists around the world go public with their revelations, Daphne publishes an article on her blog explaining how Mizzi used his secret trust fund to avoid paying taxes in Malta. Then, she reveals that local businessman Keith Schembri was engaged in a similar scheme. And since Schembri is now the prime minister’s chief of staff, this story takes the scandal even closer to the heart of the Maltese government.

The Panama Papers, as this leak becomes known, dominates Daphne’s writing for the next twelve months. She continues to dig into the documents, but there’s so much information to plow through that she must enlist the help of her son. And after a year of work, Daphne thinks they’ve found another offender who’s used offshore accounts to evade Maltese taxes. This time, the person who Daphne accuses is Michelle Muscat, the wife of Malta’s Prime Minister.

Daphne’s latest revelation threatens to bring down the entire government on the island. The scandal creates such controversy that many voters demand the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Muscat. But instead, Muscat vows to fight the allegations. He calls a snap election that effectively becomes a referendum on his leadership. And despite the allegations, when the votes are tallied, Prime Minister Muscat holds on to power.

But Daphne’s no-holds-barred reporting has made her enemies in high places. On the afternoon of October 16th, 2017, Daphne makes a routine trip to the bank. She’s only driven a few hundred yards from her house when a bomb planted under her car seat explodes. Daphne is killed instantly, and her body is so badly burned by the explosion and resulting fire that it can only formally be identified using DNA.

Soon, rumors begin to swirl that this assassination may have been ordered by someone in the Maltese government. A prominent businessman who Daphne identified in the Panama Papers is arrested and questioned. He declares his innocence but also claims that the assassination was ordered by Keith Schembri, the prime minister’s chief of staff. Days later, Schembri resigns before he too is arrested. And as the scandal spreads, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat then announces he too will also step down.

In the end, the prime minister, his chief of staff, and their businessman ally are not charged with the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia. Police can’t find enough evidence of who ordered the killing. But they do think they know who carried it out.

In December 2017, ten weeks after Daphne’s death, police will arrest three hitmen and charge them with her murder. They won’t face court for another four years, but in the meantime, Daphne’s colleagues from around the world will join together to continue her work. 18 global news outlets will collaborate on “The Daphne Project”, dedicated to exposing corruption and criminality, with a clear message to those behind the assassination: if you kill one journalist, other will always take their place.

Act Three

It’s May 4th, 2021, in a courtroom in Valletta, the capital of Malta, four years after the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Vincent Muscat lifts a glass of water and takes a sip, hoping that the packed court can’t see his trembling hand. Then, he begins to speak, knowing that his freedom depends on what he’s about to say.

Although Vincent's last name is the same as the scandal tossed former prime minister of Malta, he has no relation to the politician. Instead, he’s a hitman for hire. Three months ago, Vincent was found guilty of murdering Daphne Caruana Galizia and sentenced to prison. Soon after his conviction, though, Vincent was given an unexpected offer. If he was prepared to come clean and give evidence against his fellow conspirators, then the authorities would reduce his sentence. Vincent agreed and, now, a few months later, he’s in court to keep his side of the bargain.

During hours of testimony, Vincent outlines what he knows to a hushed courtroom. He describes how he was recruited by brothers George and Alfred Degeorgio, who had been paid 150,000 euros to assassinate Daphne.

After weeks of surveillance, Vincent and his co-conspirators spotted their opportunity. Daphne parked her car on the street instead of near her house as usual. So, Vincent hid a bomb under her seat, and then according to Vincent, George Degeorgio remotely detonated the bomb.

But the most shocking moment in Vincent’s testimony comes when he explains how he and the Degeorgio brothers knew about Daphne’s movements in the days prior to the attack. Vincent reveals that the conspirators were passed information by a then government minister Chris Cardona.

Following Vincent’s appearance in court, his sentence is reduced to 15 years in prison. The Degeorgio brothers are sentenced to 40 years each. But Chris Cardona will deny any involvement in Daphne’s assassination, and no solid evidence will be found linking him to the crime. Still, a later independent inquiry will conclude that the Maltese government was at least partly responsible for Daphne’s murder.

And even though Daphne's life was taken from her, those who tried to silence her failed. Thanks to the legacy of her reporting and the work of those who have been inspired by her, Daphne’s voice speaks just as loudly as ever, years after her fiery death on October 16th, 2017.

Outro

Next on History Daily. October 17th, 1945. Argentinians take to the streets to demand the liberation of ousted and imprisoned Vice President Juan Domingo Peron.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Gabriel Gould.

Music by Thrumm.

This episode is written and researched by Rob Scragg.

Edited by Scott Reeves.

Managing producer, Emily Burke.

Executive Producers are William Simpson for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.