Former minister Carmelo Abela has successfully won a libel case against Jason Azzopardi, with the court ordering €7,000 in damages.
The case stemmed from a 2021 Facebook post in which Azzopardi, a former PN MP, accused Abela of involvement in a failed armed robbery at HSBC Qormi in 2010.
In his July 2021 testimony, Azzopardi claimed that Alfred Degiorgio, one of the alleged hitmen in the Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination, had received plans and false keys for the robbery just days before it occurred.
He further alleged that Vince Muscat, a convicted hitman in the Caruana Galizia murder case, had accompanied Degiorgio to a meeting at a Fleur-de-Lys apartment.
According to Azzopardi, the meeting involved the exchange of bank plans, footage, and false keys, allegedly in the presence of Abela and former minister Chris Cardona.
The court, presided over by Magistrate Rachel Montebello, ruled that Azzopardi’s claims were defamatory and awarded damages to Abela, also ordering Azzopardi to cover the court costs.
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