Yorgen Fenech is back in court this morning for a sitting before the Criminal Court following his latest request to be released from prison on bail. 

Fenech stands accused of masterminding the plot to assassinate journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. He was arrested in November 2019 and has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. 

On Monday, lawyers representing Fenech submitted a bail application before the Criminal Court, arguing that their client’s continued detention was no longer justifiable, given that the compilation of evidence against him was at an advanced stage. 

They argued that there existed no fear of him tampering with evidence or absconding. Fenech’s lawyers also pointed to a legal provision stating that an accused person must be released on bail if the compilation of evidence against them drags on for more than 20 months. 

The law, however, also states that the 20-month countdown is suspended every time the acts of the case are in the Attorney General’s possession. 

Judge Giovanni Grixti gave the Attorney General 24 hours to reply to the accused’s application and scheduled a sitting today for the matter to be decided. 

You can follow proceedings through our live blog below.