In late November 2019, Muscat's premiership was rocked by the arrest of prominent businessman Yorgen Fenech and the implication of Muscat's chief of staff Keith Schembri. On 25 November 2019, after protestors had called for him to resign, Muscat autonomously decided to grant presidential pardon to Melvin Theuma, considered the middleman between the executors of Caruana Galizia's murder, and the masterminds. On 29 November, after a six-hours cabinet meeting, Muscat denied the same presidential pardon to Yorgen Fenech. The same day Muscat informed the President of Malta George Vella that he would soon be resigning his duties as Prime Minister.