During the initial hearing, it was said that the probe was initiated following information provided by the Caruana Galizia family, suggesting a possible leak of details related to the murder investigation of Daphne Caruana Galizia to the suspects. In fact, Aquilina was first arrested in 2021.

Inspector Shaun Friggieri testified that while Aquilina was still employed in the Police Force, he had entered into a property agreement with Yorgen Fenech. Inspector Friggieri also revealed that investigators discovered photos of Aquilina’s parents’ ID cards on Fenech’s mobile phone.

Additionally, conversations between Fenech and several individuals, including property developers, were found, with messages designed to disappear automatically.
It was said that Aquilina had searched for Fenech’s name and ID details in the Police database on 11 separate occasions.

The case also involves transactions related to the sale of an apartment and garage in Birżebbuġa, which were sold for over €60,000—an amount deemed suspiciously low.
Concerns were raised over the fact that the loan for the property was obtained well after the sale, which raised questions about how the purchase was financed.

The prosecution is being led by Inspector Sean Friggieri, with Dr Andrea Zammit and Dr Gary Cauchi from the Attorney General’s Office. Yorgen Fenech is represented by Dr Charles Mercieca and Dr Gianluca Caruana Curran, while Aquilina’s defense is led by Dr Lennox Vella, and Notary Mario Bugeja is being defended by Dr Franco Debono.