Crucial recordings potentially placing serious doubt on state witness Melvin Theuma’s pardon were set to be played in court tomorrow, which could now be delayed following his alleged suicide attempt.

Theuma was granted a pardon in exchange for giving true testimony on the plot to assassinate journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. His claims have so far been focused on Yorgen Fenech’s involvement.

Sources have suggested that the new recordings, which would have been played in court tomorrow at 9.30am, would have seriously questioned Theuma’s testimony so far.

During last week’s sitting Fenech’s lawyer Gianluca Caruana Curran asked whether Edwin Brincat (Il-Ġojja) had paid €30,000 to then police commissioner Lawrence Cutajar, with the implication being that Theuma had bribed Cutajar to secure a pardon.

Brincat is a mutual acquaintance of Cutajar and Theuma, and Cutajar is under investigation for leaking information to Theuma, via Brincat, about the police investigation into the murder.

Theuma denied that Brincat paid Cutajar €30,000, and it was at this point that Fenech’s lawyer asked the court to play out a particular recording that Theuma had taken.

Caruana Curran said he had been waiting for seven months for the prosecution to play this recording but it hasn’t done so.

The lawyer said these recordings will prove that Theuma was lying when he said he only recorded Fenech and his business partner Johann Cremona.

The recordings would have been played to the court tomorrow at 9.30am. Meanwhile, Fenech’s legal team would have also been given a copy of Theuma’s presidential pardon following a magistrate’s decree.

Theuma was granted the pardon on the recommendation of then-Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who acted on the advice of Cutajar and Attorney General Peter Grech.