Valletta Ditch Murder Suspect Yet To Be Charged Three Months After He Showed Police The Body
It’s been three months since Charlene Farrugia’s body was found hidden in bags at a Valletta ditch, eleven years after she was reported missing. However, although initial reports stated a man was set to be charged after confessing to police and leading them to the body, no arraignments have been made as of yet.
Jean-Paul Charles Woods was arrested in July after he attempted to rob a Convenience Shop outlet in Gżira, a crime that he later pleaded guilty to and which landed him seven years’ imprisonment.
While Woods was being detained at Mount Carmel, he reportedly came clean about murdering Farrugia and eventually even led police to the site, behind the Phoenicia hotel, where her remains were buried.
Police were awaiting DNA tests to confirm their suspicions before charging Woods but it is unclear whether these results have arrived yet.
The case had picked up significant media coverage a few months ago
Times of Malta reported that police had interrogated Woods at the time of Farrugia’s disappearance 11 years ago, but police insisted that this was not the case.
KullĦadd reported that Woods had owed Farrugia’s ex boyfriend some €200 and the young woman was tasked with collecting the money after her ex ended up in jail.
“At one point, Woods told Farrugia to go to his apartment,” the report stated. “Naturally, she was given the impression that she would be able to collect the money, but instead of giving her the €200, Woods took her life.”
Citing sources close to the investigation, Illum reported that police had found Farrugia injured in a street in Birżebbuġia, the same street she lived in, shortly before she disappeared.
Police treated this as a case of domestic violence and, according to the newspaper, this incident prompted police to interrogate the ex after Farrugia disappeared.
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