In the next 24 hours, probably until Wednesday, the Judicial Council will decide whether or not to remand Eva Kaili, who, according to the Belgian media, is currently being held in St. Gilles prison in Brussels, in connection with the corruption and bribery scandal that has erupted since last Friday in the European Parliament.
With its vice-president in jail, then, the European Parliament is called into session for the first time since the revelation of the Qatar-related corruption scandal - the Qatar Gate, as the international press has dubbed it.
The agenda apparently does not include a formal report on the case, but it is taken for granted that there will be reports from MEPs and the Bureau.
In fact, British journalist Jack Parock, who has made several revelations about the scandal, claimed that "the European Parliament will be on fire[/B]", in statements to ANT1.
The penalties foreseen
Nikos Korogiannakis spoke to ERT about the penalties that those involved in Qatar Gate are going to face.
The lawyer, who is familiar with the Belgian legal system, spoke of serious offences for which, if the charges are proven, the Criminal Code provides for three to five years in prison.
- Qatar-Gate: "It was like Napalm fell" says Eva Kaili's sister[/B]
- Qatar-gate: the Italian "core" of the most dramatic corruption story of recent years[/B]
- Eva Kaili: From Doha to St. Giles Prison. The charges, the sentences and the questions
"At the moment, from the information we have from public media, she was charged this afternoon with the three charges that have been made public. According to Belgian procedure, within 48 hours this remand ordered by the investigator must be confirmed by the judicial council. Within those 48 hours, therefore, her defence will have access to the file, which it has not had until now," Korogiannakis said.
"Their lawyers have access to the file only if they are remanded in custody, as was the case today. Then they get access to the file for 48 hours and then the investigating judge's decision to remand in custody is confirmed or rejected by a panel of judges, by people who have never seen the investigation before, have never seen the papers before and to which her lawyers argue," he explained.
On immunity
On the issue of immunity, Korogiannakis explained that in order for the Belgian authorities to avoid it, they have to arrest the MEP in the act. "In the act means the moment he commits a criminal offence, either the moment he receives the bribe, because that is what we are discussing here, or the moment he tries to conceal the products of crime. We do not know many details, but in any case, only if this has happened can there be a custody order. This is the provision in the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union, which explicitly states that immunity cannot be invoked when there is an arrest in camera. Is there really an arrest in camera? I assume that her lawyers 48 hours from now, sometime on Wednesday morning, will be called upon to explain it and fight it before the judges."
On Eva Kaili's sentence
With regard to the penalties attached to the charges Ms Kaili faces, Mr Korogiannakis replied that these are serious offences. "The Criminal Code provides for three to five years in prison, if these charges are proven, namely passive bribery - bribery, as we call it and formation and participation in a criminal organization."
On the possibility of house arrest, the lawyer stressed: "It can be, but in order to order remand, a number of conditions must be met and it is the defendant who must explain why these conditions are not met in the case of home detention. I suppose the most important problem for Ms Eva Kaili and for which provisional detention is justified is the ability of her and her co-defendants to influence the investigation and obstruct the investigation. Consequently, I feel that there is a very strong reason not to release her immediately if these allegations are true."
The procedure until the case is heard
After the arrest warrant was issued against her, Eva Kaili was reportedly taken to the central prison in Brussels, Saint-Gilles.
According to the procedure, the former -now- vice-president of the European Parliament will remain in prison for up to five days. She will then reappear before the authorities, who will decide whether to keep her in custody until the start of the trial or whether to release her.
There are three criteria to decide whether to keep her in custody. Whether she is found to be a suspected fugitive, whether she is found to be suspected of committing the same or similar offences and whether there is collusion, that is, whether she finds the people who will succeed in erasing her trail and ultimately exonerate her in court.
It will take about a year to a year and a half before the proceedings begin.
Source: cnn.gr / ert / protothema.gr
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
Source[/URL]
