Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1527938
2 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 16 OCTOBER 2024 2 MATTHEW AGIUS magius@mediatoday.com.mt THE former OPM employee Neville Gafà, a Muscat loyalist who placed him- self on the warpath against critics of the former prime minister, placed placards with unflattering news headlines about Daphne Caruana Galizia at the memorial for the slain journalist. Blogging about his stunt, Gafà taunt- ed supporters of Caruana Galizia on the eve of the seventh anniversary of her assassination, with a placard of one of the journalist's blogs remarking on the death of Margaret Thatcher and of former Labour prime minister Dom Mintoff, 'Do by all means speak ill of the dead if they were influential in life.' "I've just been to the Great Siege mon- ument to exercise my right to freedom of expression," Gafà wrote on his blog. "Now the time has come to see whether they (ta' Daphne) respect others' free- dom of expression." Gafà was referencing previous at- tempts by the Labour administration to clean up the flowers and posters left at the Great Siege monument, which in 2017 was turned into an impromptu memorial for the journalist. The clean- ups, often viewed as deliberate attempts to rile activists, stopped after Robert Abela's election as Labour prime minis- ter in January 2020. Gafà specifically addressed Judge Jo- seph Zammit McKeon, over his 2020 ruling in favour of activist Manuel Delia in the case he filed against then justice minister Owen Bonnici and the director general of cleansing, Ramon Deguara, for carrying out the clean-ups. Gafà said that should his placards be removed, he will place them there again. Gafà posted pictures of the placards, referencing Caruana Galizia's post on "speaking ill of the dead if they were influ- ential", which concerned a previous post in 2012 that celebrated the death of for- mer Labour prime minister Dom Mintoff; he also posted headlines referencing an unpaid VAT bill by the journalist, and an- other court sitting dealing with a domes- tic dispute with her husband. 'Small man, big ego' Reacting to the news, NGO Occupy Justice described Gafa's action as "noth- ing beyond a petty, attention-seeking stunt." They stated that they will not be re- moving the placards. "This man, who was at the centre of the medical visa scandal involving millions of Euros, and who is yet to face justice. The man protected by his puppet-mas- ters, who acts with complete impunity. This small man who not only harassed Daphne when she was alive, but contin- ues to vilify and mock her in death." Placards removed Later on Tuesday afternoon, Malta- Today went to the makeshift memorial, however the placards were nowhere to be seen. This newspaper asked NGO Repubbli- ka whether it was behind the removal. The NGO's President, Vicki Ann Crem- ona stated that they did not remove the placards, adding, "and frankly, we don't care what Neville Gafà does. Our focus is on justice for Daphne and what she wrote about." Similarly, Occupy Justice's Pia Zam- mit stated that the NGO did not remove the placards. Meanwhile, a spokesperson from the Cleansing Ministry told this newspaper that the Cleansing and Maintenance Di- vision was not behind the removal. Muscat loyalist tests activists, authorities with Daphne Caruana Galizia placards Neville Gafa posed in front of the makeshift memorial after placing the placards LOCAL traders have testified to having sold flights to and from Colombia and hundreds of euros worth of sex toys, lu- bricants and condoms to indi- viduals now accused of running a human trafficking operation. This emerged as Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech pre- sided over a sitting on Tues- day, in the compilation of ev- idence against Luke Farrugia, Clint D'Amato, Denzil Farru- gia, Alexandra Suhov Procora, Nicolae Efimov, Kane Vassallo, Luca Emanuele Corito, Dylan McKay and Gordon Cassar. The nine defendants are ac- cused of money laundering, promoting or setting up a criminal organisation, forcing individuals over 21 years of age into prostitution, holding persons against their will in a brothel as bonded debtors, knowingly living off the earn- ings of prostitution and run- ning a brothel. One witness, who works at a travel agency, recognised Luke Farrugia and Gordon Cassar in the dock today, telling the court that Farrugia would reg- ularly buy flight tickets to and from Colombia for "friends" - in cash. Farrugia had first called at her office in mid-2019, said the witness, but he soon became a regular customer. Prices for the flights he would buy would fluctuate between €1000 and €1,700 depending on the time of the flights and other external factors, said the witness, who also said that she would handle invoicing for Far- rugia, who would pay for the tickets at her office, in person. "When I used to handle the bookings, I would receive them on my mobile phone. I have the mobile number that was used to contact me but the messages themselves had been sent with a disappearing timer and have since been erased." She read out the number, but said she could not confirm to whom it belonged. Cassar had once bought flight tickets and a hotel stay to attend a concert in Madrid. Amongst the other witness- es who testified today was the owner of a sex shop in Qormi. He recognised Gordon Cas- sar and Clint D'Amato in the courtroom, telling the court that they would buy condoms, lubricants and sex toys from his shop, he said. They had done so "a few times", he said, and had bought around €200 worth of condoms alone. Alexandra Pocora was also an occasional customer of his, he said. Two neighbours who live near the property allegedly used as a brothel also testified today, telling the court that they had noticed a variety of men going up and down the stairs to a par- ticular apartment in their block over the past year. This had stopped around April or June, one said. The other resident identified Luke Farrugia as having carried out maintenance works in the apartment in the year before. The press was then ordered out of the courtroom and the sitting continued behind closed doors in order for the court to hear testimony from a number of men who had bought sex from the Colombi- an women. Police inspectors John Spi- teri, Joseph Xerri and Dori- anne Tabone are prosecuting, together with lawyers Ramon Bonett Sladden, Charmaine Abdilla from the Office of the Attorney General. Lawyers Franco Debono, Mar- ion Camilleri, Mario Mifsud, Nicholas Mifsud, Charles Mer- cieca, Roberto Montalto, and Kathleen Calleja Grima are as- sisting the accused. Local traders testify in case against nine accused of human trafficking