Oct. 16 (UPI) -- A car bomb on Malta's southern island killed a journalist who linked the government to the Panama Papers scandal, local police said Monday.

Daphne Caruana Galizia, 53, died when her car exploded shortly after she left her home in Bidnija, BBC News reported. The bomb left her vehicle in several pieces along a road and nearby field around 3 p.m.


Caruana Galizia filed a police report 15 days before her death saying she had been threatened, The Times of Malta reported.

Earlier this year, she accused Prime Minister Joseph Muscat of wrongdoing, linking him and his wife to the Panama Papers. The papers included documents detailing financial information, some of which included fraud and tax evasion.

Despite the accusations, Muscat condemned her death. Police opened a murder investigation.

"I condemn without reservations this barbaric attack on a person and on the freedom of expression in our country," he said in a televised statement.

Muscat said there was "no justification ... in any way" for her death.

"I will not rest before justice is done," he said.

Thousands of people gathered Monday night in Sliema for a candlelight vigil. Maltese nationals in London also held an event outside Malta's High Commission in Mayfair.