It is now abundantly clear why Maria Efimova, the Russian source of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s Egrant story, had fled Malta. She must have been convinced that the ‘frame-up’ attempt on the Prime Minister’s wife, Michelle Muscat, would be exposed by the inquiring magistrate. Indeed, that is what has now happened.

Efimova and Caruana Galizia have been found to have made false allegations against Muscat, Keith Schembri, Konrad Mizzi and John Dalli.

Simon Busuttil, who had immediately made that allegation the Nationalist Party’s battle cry for the election and also went to the President of Malta asking her to intervene by pressuring Joseph Muscat to resign, is now in deep trouble. He has been asked to suspend himself from the PN’s parliamentary group, not just by Adrian Delia but also by the administrative council.

But there are others who should be facing the music. David Casa had made himself Efimova’s main defender. He went to Greece at least twice to help her in her quest not to be extradited to Malta to face charges of fraud and false accusations she had made about a police officer.

Together with Roberta Metsola, Casa had used the Egrant “frame-up” attempt to undermine the Prime Minister and tarnish Malta’s name in the European Parliament and internationally.

Pierre Portelli too has a lot to answer for.

Finally, Muscat’s uncontrollable emotions at the end of his speech, which brought tears to so many watching his press conference, proved what he, his wife and the rest of the family have been subjected to these last 15 months by vile people who orchestrated the frame-up.