European Parliament: Greek MP Eva Kaili denies receiving a bribe from Qatar, despite the confiscation of more than one million euros

Qatar, in turn, denies any wrongdoing.

Eva Kylie’s lawyer said his client was innocent.

Lawyer Michalis Dimitrakopoulos added to Greek television today, Tuesday, that his client “declares her innocence, and that she had nothing to do with a bribe from Qatar.”

The investigative authorities conducted a series of searches over several days, and announced that cash worth about $632,000 was found in the home of a suspected representative. More than $158,000 was also found in the apartment of another deputy, as well as several hundred thousand euros in a suitcase at a hotel in Brussels. The police also confiscated computers and mobile phones to check their contents.

On Tuesday, Belgian police released a picture showing stacks of 200, 50, 20 and 10 euro banknotes. It is reported that the total amount of this amount is approximately 1.5 million euros.

Asked if the police found money in Eva Kylie’s house, the lawyer said: “I have no idea if he lent any money or what it’s worth.”

The investigating authorities said in a statement on Sunday that four of the suspects – who were arrested by the Belgian police – were charged with “participation in a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption”.

The suspects will appear before a court of first instance on Wednesday.

The other three defendants hold Italian citizenship. Among them is former MEP Pier Antonio Panzieri, who now runs a human rights organisation.

These allegations of corruption have highlighted the role played by lobbyists in the corridors of the European Parliament. Including that a recommendation to allow Qataris to travel to the European Union without a visa was to be put to a vote in parliament this week, but it was postponed.

Inspections took place in Brussels and Italy. The data processing of 10 employees of the European Parliament has been “frozen”, to prevent the disappearance of data essential to the investigation.

Members of the European Parliament, from one of its headquarters in Strasbourg, voted by a large majority on Tuesday to strip Eva Kayley of her powers as deputy speaker.

Kylie was also suspended from the European Parliament’s Socialists and Democrats group, as well as expelled from the centre-left Hellenic Socialist Movement party.

The Greek authorities froze the assets of Kylie and her husband, as well as members of her immediate family, as well as the activities of a real estate company that the deputy and her husband established two weeks ago in Athens.

Six people were detained on Friday as part of an investigation into accusations that Qatar had bribed European Union officials to gain influence. Subsequently, two of these detainees were released.

The other three defendants hold Italian citizenship, including the parliamentary aide Francesco Giorgi – Kylie’s life partner.

Among the suspects is former member of the European Parliament Pier Antonio Panzieri, who now runs the rights group Fight Immunity, sources said. It was also reported that Panziri’s wife and daughter were among those arrested.

According to the Italian news agency ANSA, Nicolo Vega Talmanca, who runs the organization No Peace Without Justice, is one of the suspects.

The General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, Luca Vesentini, was investigated before he was released at a later time. Vesentini said he was able to answer all the questions that were put to him.

The BBC’s correspondent in Brussels, Jessica Parker, says that the details released by the Belgian authorities about the incident in the past few days left many in European Union circles in shock.

Members of the European Parliament told our correspondent that they were shocked by both the scale and the clarity of the accusations.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said that these accusations are “very serious”, calling for the establishment of an ethics oversight body to ensure compliance with them in the euro area.

European Parliament President Metsola pledged to restore the parliament’s integrity. “European democracy is under attack… Our free and democratic societies are under attack,” she said.

Observers and opposition parliamentarians said the bribery investigation could represent one of the biggest corruption scandals in the history of the European Parliament.

The Federal Prosecutor in Belgium said that it suspected that a Gulf state had been exercising influence over economic and political decisions for several months, especially in decisions related to targeted aid.

Media indicated that the country facing charges of corruption and bribery was Qatar, but the Qatari government confirmed that any allegations of wrongdoing were “severely misleading information”.

Kylie’s responsibilities in the European Parliament as Vice-President of the European Parliament include Middle East issues, and she has been known to defend Qatar in the past.

And the European Parliament is the only body that is elected directly, as voters in the 27 countries that make up the Union go to elect about 705 members who meet to scrutinize and vote on proposed legislation under European law.

Members of the European Parliament are generally immune from investigation, except in cases of flagrante delicto, according to the Parliament’s regulations.