“Qatargate”: Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella charged and imprisoned for corruption

Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella was charged in particular with "

", then placed in pre-trial detention on Saturday in the investigation into suspicions of interference by Qatar and Morocco in the decisions of the European Parliament, announced the federal prosecutor's office.

The 59-year-old elected socialist was imprisoned after his indictment for "

", "

" and "

", Eric van der Sijpt, spokesman for the federal prosecutor's office, told AFP. .

Three other people, including Greek MEP Eva Kaili, are already incarcerated in this case.

In the same investigation, another socialist MEP, the Italian Andrea Cozzolino, also deprived of his immunity on February 2, was arrested in Italy, confirmed a spokesman for the prosecution.

“

,” said spokesman Eric van der Sijpt.

Three people imprisoned in this case

Marc Tarabella (59) and Andrea Cozzolino (60), colleagues from the Socialists & Democrats group in Parliament, are suspected of having favored the interference of Qatar and Morocco in the decisions of the institution.

They were both arrested on Friday.

The first was at his home in Anthisnes, in the region of Liège (eastern Belgium), where several searches took place on Friday morning targeting in particular a bank safe belonging to him and the offices of his town hall, according to the prosecution. .

The second was arrested in Naples (southern Italy), leaving a clinic where he had undergone medical examinations, the Italian press agency Ansa said on Friday.

Read also“Qatargate”: implicated, Morocco seeks a response

The name of Marc Tarabella, elected football enthusiast who spoke a lot in the European Parliament on the subject of the organization of the World Cup-2022 by Qatar, appeared very early when this scandal broke out on December 9.

The next day, December 10, his home was searched.

But no cash had been discovered, and he had not been arrested.

Belgian justice had to wait for the end of the procedure for lifting immunity in Parliament to consider any coercive measure.

Currently, three people are imprisoned in this case: Greek MEP Eva Kaili, stripped of her post as Vice-President of Parliament in December, as well as her companion, parliamentary assistant Francesco Giorgi, and former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, also Italian.

The latter admitted to having orchestrated the fraud.

Read alsoQatargate: two MEPs lose their immunity

According to the Belgian press, Pier Antonio Panzeri implicated Marc Tarabella before the investigators in December shortly after his arrest in Brussels.

He claimed to have paid him "

" in several installments for his help in matters related to Qatar.

Marc Tarabella denied any wrongdoing, and asked to be heard to explain himself.

In Belgium, the investigating judge has 48 hours after the arrest to decide on a possible placement in pre-trial detention.