Slain reporter’s family appears at libel trial in Malta

VALLETTA, Malta – An anti-corruption reporter’s family has appeared in a court in Malta for a libel case against her, a week after she was killed by a car bomb.

The husband and three sons of Daphne Caruana Galizia attended Monday’s hearing in a libel case brought by Malta’s economy minister after she alleged that he had been to a brothel in Germany while on government business earlier this year. Minister Chris Cardona, who wasn’t in court, has denied the allegation and filed the libel suit.

The case was postponed.

Since libel cases in Malta don’t end after a person’s death but are passed on to heirs, her family risks a fine as high as 11,000 euros ($13,000) if the ruling goes against her.