The Guardia di Finanza of Naples, on behalf of the Belgian federal prosecutor's office, has been given the mandate to notify MEP Andrea Cozzolino of a European arrest warrant on suspicion of involvement in the so-called Qatargate.
The finance police went to Cozzolino's Neapolitan home, but the MEP was not found at home.
He was tracked down and arrested in a clinic, where he was hospitalized for health problems. Also present in the clinic was the lawyer Dezio Ferraro, one of the defenders of the MEP.
Cozzolino, for the Belgian investigators, was an integral part of "the team of Panzeri and Giorgi". For the Brussels judge Michel Clais, the MEP of the Democratic Party was "a fundamental pawn for Morocco", because he was in direct contact with "Abderrahim Atmoun, the Moroccan ambassador to Poland", the man who allegedly gave bribes in cash.
The suspicion is that Cozzolino also went to Morocco on a flight paid for, writes Claise, “by the secret services of Rabat”, even if on this point there is no confirmation that the MEP from Campania ever boarded that plane.
Andrea Cozzolino, originally from Ercolano, has a long tradition first in the PCI and then in the PD. He is in his second term as Member of the European Parliament.
This morning, Belgian federal police officers searched the Brussels home of MEP Andrea Cozzolino, as part of the 'Qatargate' investigation. The newspaper Le Soir reported, citing a confirmation from the Federal Prosecutor's Office.
The Italian MEP of the Democratic Party was absent at the time of the search, but his apartment was searched anyway. The Belgian MEP, Marc Tarabella, also had his home in Anthisnes, in the province of Liège, searched and is now waiting for the judge to decide whether to confirm the arrest.
Article published on 10 February 2023 - 19:05
