Some readers may find descriptions in the testimony below disturbing
Murder suspect Yorgen Fenech was once again denied bail at the end of a sitting which detailed the gruesome testimonies of the first responders minutes after Daphne Caruana Galizia’s car was blown up.
Fenech’s lawyers made a case for his bail after 15 months of incarceration, saying their client was even prepared to pay for his own security to put the prosecution’s minds at rest that he had no plans to abscond.
Lawyer Charles Mercieca said at least five other murder suspects had been granted bail in the last 15 months, yet the court was not prepared to consider it for their client, even though he had a clean criminal record.
Updated 12.44pm
Some readers may find descriptions in the testimony below disturbing.
A Bidnija resident recalled the horror of seeing and hearing Daphne Caruana Galizia being blown up inside her car in October 2017 when he testified in court on Tuesday.
Francis Sant was driving home from Tarġa Gap at 3 pm on October 16 of that year when he noticed something was wrong with a car heading in his direction.
The person inside the car seemed to be panicking, he recalled.
“ I heard a small bang, like fireworks. Then I heard a piercing scream,” Sant told the court.
That was followed by an explosion, as the small white car came hurtling “in a ball of fire”, just metres away from his.
An eyewitness who saw Daphne Caruana Galizia’s car explode has told the court of the horrific scene he saw on the day of the murder.
Francis Sant, a Bidnija resident, was driving up the hill towards the hamlet at around 3pm on 16 October 2017 when he spotted Caruana Galizia’s white car coming towards him.
Sant testified in court this morning as the compilation of evidence against Yorgen Fenech continued. Fenech is accused of masterminding the murder.
Speaking in a soft voice, Sant recalled how Caruana Galizia’s car suddenly slowed down and he sensed something was wrong.
“The person inside the car appeared to be panicking. It made me afraid. I heard a small bang, like fireworks. Then I heard a piercing scream,” Sant told the court.