PN Leader Adrian Delia insists he never met Yorgen Fenech, the main suspect in the Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination after he was revealed to be the owner of Panama Papers linked company 17 Black.

“I would like to declare in the most absolute and categorical manner that I have never met Yorgen Fenech after news emerged that he was involved in the company 17 Black,” Delia said in a statement.

Earlier today, middleman Melvin Theuma revealed that Fenech informed him of a lunch he had with Delia at his Haz-Żebbuġ farmhouse during a sensational court sitting. Delia had reportedly asked whether it was OK if he turned up for lunch wearing shorts.

Lovin Malta reached out to Delia for clarification on the claims. However, beyond the 17 Black denial, Delia refused to reply to questions as to whether he ever met Fenech while serving as Opposition Leader, where the dinner took place, and what was discussed.

“The reply is in the statement,” a PN spokesperson told Lovin Malta after being asked for clarification.

Rather than address the questions, Delia referred to a previous statement given to Lovin Malta in April 2019.

“I must clarify that no amount of meetings, encounters, advertisements or whatever else one may consider as being an association of sorts, should ever be construed to indicate even remotely the possibility to dampen my fight against any kind of corruption.”

“I have, still am and always will fight against corruption. Of all sorts. It is in my nature. It is how I was brought up. It is who I am. It is what I believe,” he said in that statement.

Fenech was allegedly first identified as the owner of 17 Black in November 2018. The offshore company was set to transfer millions to former Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff Keith Schembri and former Minister  Konrad Mizzi’s’s Panamanian accounts.

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