2023-07-21 14:40:00
The home of Belgian Socialist MEP Marie Arena (PS) was raided by federal police on Wednesday as part of the investigation into Qatargate and suspicions of corruption linked to this affair within the European Parliament. It is a question of determining if the relationship between the parliamentarian and his Italian ex-colleague Pier Antonio Panzeri was “strictly friendly”, or if it is linked to the current affair. Five other places linked “directly or indirectly” to the politician and her family were also searched, according to a press release from the prosecutors, quoted by Archyde.com.
Through her lawyer Me Michèle Hirsch, the parliamentarian told the Belga press agency have previously reported to the investigating judge that she was at the disposal of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. In this sense, she said that she would “probably be heard” by the courts “in the coming weeks”, adding that she was “convinced” that the investigation will confirm that she would not be “in any way involved in this file”. Last March, a version relayed by the press in Belgium and Italy indicated that Marie Arena would have stayed with Pier Antonio Panzeri in the luxury hotel La Mamounia in Marrakech, in 2015, at the expense of Morocco. The former MEP also maintained that his colleague did not know who had actually sponsored the trip.
Within the framework of Qatargate, the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office is investigating alleged actions by Qatar and Morocco, having potentially served to influence economic or political decisions within the European Parliament, through the intermediary of the Italian former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri and his non-profit organization Fight Impunity. Both countries reject any suspicion of corruption.
Pier Antonio Panzeri is one of the main suspects, along with Francesco Giorgi, lobbyist Nicolo Figa-Talamanca and Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella. According to Belgian media, the name of Marie Arena “has been mentioned several times in this case”, given her links with Panzeri.
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