As part of the investigation into the corruption case involving the European Parliament, the competent Belgian prosecutor's office indicted and remanded the Belgian member of the European Parliament (EP) Marc Tarabella, wrote the French-language Belgian daily La Libre Belgique on Sunday.
According to the report, Eric van der Sijpt, the spokesman of the federal prosecutor's office, said: Tarabella is accused of corruption, money laundering and participation in a criminal organization.
Marc Tarabella was detained by the Belgian police on Friday after, among other things, the MEP's safe kept in a bank in Liege and several offices in the Walloon city of Anthisnes, where the 59-year-old politician is the mayor, were searched during the day.
The detention may have taken place after the EP suspended the socialist politician's immunity at last week's plenary session.
The prosecutor's office announced that Marc Tarabella was detained and interrogated as part of the investigation into the corruption scandal involving the EP.
The deposed vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, and three of her companions were arrested on December 9 by the Belgian authorities as part of an investigation into a corruption case. Two of them, Kaili and her partner, the Italian Francesco Giorgi, and former Italian Socialist MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri are in prison. They are accused of belonging to a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption.
Panzeri reached a plea deal with investigators at the end of January. He previously testified that he paid Tarabella between 120,000 and 140,000 euros "for his assistance in dealing with matters related to Qatar."
On the website of the daily newspaper, Tarabella's lawyer was quoted, according to whom his client denied his guilt throughout the hearing held on Saturday. He said the only alleged "evidence" against Tarabella was Panzeri's incriminating comment, which the lawyer called defamation. Tarabella "continues to maintain his innocence and has never received money or gifts in exchange for favors," he said.
At last week's plenary session in Brussels, the European Parliament also suspended the immunity of the Italian Andrea Cozzolino in connection with the corruption case of Eva Kaili, the Greek socialist representative, the deposed vice-president of the EP. Both deny any wrongdoing.
Source: hirado.hu
Featured Image: brusselstimes.com
