None of those mentioned in Daphne Caruana Galizia’s blogs were interrogated by the police after her murder, the Times of Malta was told.
Police sources said Wednesday the only people questioned were the ones arrested as part of a nationwide raid last year. Among those held in early December were three men who were subsequently arraigned and charged with the murder.
The accused – brothers George and Alfred Degiorgio and Vincent Muscat – were yesterday among those who attended an on-site inquiry in Bidnija, where Ms Caruana Galizia was killed in a car bomb last October.
"That is who we interrogated, people we had solid evidence against," the sources said.
Times of Malta reported on Wednesday that the police had not spoken to any politicians despite the fact that the murdered journalist had written extensively about politics.
Read: 'No politicians interviewed in Caruana Galizia murder probe'
They defended the decision to restrict interrogations saying they did not believe featuring in a blog was enough reason for the police to summon a person and question him about a murder.
“What should we do? Bring in everyone she ever wrote about? That is so many people. Our investigation method is to try and establish a motive and then take that to a magistrate before bringing anybody in for questioning,” the sources added.
When it was pointed out that Ms Caruana Galizia had written about some of the most controversial political issues in recent years, the sources pointed out that to summon a suspect for questioning investigators would require a warrant from the inquiring magistrate.
"Being mentioned in a blog is not enough to go to a magistrate asking for a warrant," they reiterated.
Being mentioned in a blog is not enough to go to a magistrate asking for a warrant
The Daphne Project was told that the political motive had practically been ruled out by investigators who were instead focusing on organised crime. The consortium of 18 international media houses on Tuesday reported two unnamed ‘witnesses’ saying they had seen Economy Minister Chris Cardona in the presence of one of the three accused at a bar in Siġġiewi.
Dr Cardona said he did not recall having any discussions with any of the three individuals accused of carrying out the car bombing.
The account by the two ‘witnesses’ has been flagged to Inquiring Magistrate Anthony Vella, however, the police sources said no such information had ever reached them.
"This was news to us. We had no idea about this allegation," the sources said.
Asked whether they planned to take any action and if Dr Cardona would be called in for questioning, the sources said the matter was due to be discussed with the inquiring magistrate in the coming days.