The family of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia have submitted a complaint to the legal regulator after lawyer Charles Mercieca resigned from the Office of the Attorney General and appeared in court the next day as part of Yorgen Fenech’s defence team.

Mr Fenech has been charged with complicity in the murder of Ms Caruana Galizia, who rose to prominence with her reporting on the Panama Papers and was killed in a car bomb attack in October 2017.

A spokesperson for the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of Justice said Mr Mercieca was not directly involved with the case prior to his departure, but Ms Caruana Galizia’s family have raised serious concerns.

“The timing of Dr Mercieca’s transition to criminal defence lawyer points to prior collusion between Mr Fenech’s defence team and a serving criminal prosecutor,” the family said in a statement, adding that it has “serious” implications for Malta’s “already weak criminal justice system”.

The family has referred the matter to a subcommittee of the Commission for the Administration of Justice which is headed by a former Chief Justice and has jurisdiction over the conduct of lawyers, Maltese outlet The Shift reports.