Move along, there’s nothing to see. According to Eva Kaili’s lawyer, the Greek vice-president of the European Parliament imprisoned on suspicion of corruption has not accepted any “bribe from Qatar”. “Her position is that she is innocent. It has nothing to do with bribes from Qatar,” lawyer Michalis Dimitrakopoulos told private Greek channel Open TV on Tuesday morning.
Asked whether money had been discovered at his client’s home, the lawyer said: “I neither confirm nor deny, there is confidentiality. I have no idea if any money was found or how much was found”. In memory, spectacular sums were seized during the 20 searches carried out until Monday evening, including 600,000 euros at the home of one of the suspects, according to the Belgian federal prosecutor’s office.
A fed up with the Greek population
The European Parliament has been shaken by a resounding alleged corruption scandal since Eva Kaili was arrested on Friday. She is suspected of having been paid by Qatar to defend the interests of the emirate which currently organizes the FIFA World Cup. The President of the European Parliament, where Eva Kaili has sat since 2014, denounced with this case an “attack” on democracy while Doha denied being involved in attempts at corruption.
This scandal also caused a shock wave in Greece where business and suspicions of corruption plague the country, causing the population to be fed up. Many Greeks expressed their shame to see this former television presenter and member of parliament (Vouli) embroiled in such a scandal. In Athens, the Anti-Money Laundering Authority froze all the assets of the MEP dismissed from the socialist party Pasok, and her relatives.