Greek left-wing member of the European Parliament (MEP) Eva Kaili has admitted she asked her father to hide cash for her after she was accused of taking money from Morocco and Qatar to influence European affairs.
Kaili, who was arrested over corruption charges earlier this month by Belgian investigators, has reportedly admitted to police that she requested her father to hide cash for her, which was later discovered in her home.
Francesco Giorgi, Kaili’s husband, has also reportedly admitted to having been involved in a group that had been attempting to influence European affairs on the behalf of Morocco and Qatar, the Greek newspaper eKathimerini reports.
Kaili’s admission comes after her father was arrested on December 9th at the Sofitel hotel in Brussels while in possession of a suitcase loaded with money.
Days later, Belgian police found around 1.5 million euros in the home of Kaili and former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, who was also arrested and said to be involved in the corruption allegations.
According to a report from last week, as many as 60 members of the European Parliament may be in the crosshairs of investigators in connection with the corruption scandal, and though so far no other suspects have been identified by investigators, media reports claim those involved are part of the left-wing Socialists and Reformers (S&D) parliamentary group.
Eva Kaili, who was the vice president of the S&D, has since also been suspended from her post following her arrest by police.
Abderrahim Atmoun, Morocco’s ambassador to Poland, has also been named as a person of interest in the case by Belgian authorities and may be linked to an individual known as “the giant” by Panzeri and his family, who are said to have used a credit card connected to the so far unidentified individual.
The wife and daughter of Panzeri were also arrested in their native Italy and are expected to be extradited to Belgium as part of the investigation and could face as many as five years in prison.
Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter at @TomlinsonCJ or email at ctomlinson(at)breitbart.com.
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