VALLETTA, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said Friday he had filed a report with the police about a message which he considered to be blackmail over presidential pardon for the suspect in the murder of a journalist.
In a statement, Muscat said he received a message saying that unless he advised in favor of a presidential pardon, a testimony would be given by the suspect in the journalist's murder, Yorgen Fenech, to implicate that he had two telephone calls with him months ago.
"No such calls were ever made. This can easily be verified," the statement said.
"The Prime Minister refused an initial request for pardon by Yorgen Fenech following advice by the Attorney General and the Police Commissioner. The Cabinet refused a second request under similar advice after the Prime Minister withdrew from the meeting," the statement said.
Fenech, a key player in Malta's energy sector, reportedly has been described as a "person of interest" in the murder of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Galizia was reportedly killed by a car bomb in Malta on Oct. 16, 2017.
Fenech has asked for a pardon to tell all about the murder. Muscat announced on Friday that the government turned down Fenech's request for immunity in exchange for information on who murdered Galizia. Enditem
