ROME—Four European Union leaders have been charged with participation in a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption, tied to alleged bribes from FIFA World Cup host Qatar.
Raids on diplomats’ homes in Brussels and Strasbourg, where the EU parliament meets, uncovered “bags of money.”
Greek EU vice president Eva Kaili—who is languishing in a Belgium jail with three other leaders—was stripped of her position by senior European leaders on Tuesday and all four will face a court on Wednesday. The assets of Kaili and her family members in Greece have been frozen while the investigation continues.
ADVERTISEMENT
Kaili made several trips to Qatar in recent years and has campaigned for Qatari citizens to be granted visa-free travel to the European Union, citing them as a “front runner in human rights,” despite reports that as many as 6,500 migrants died while the nation prepared to host the World Cup.
The European Commission is also actively courting Qatar as an alternative supplier to Russian liquefied natural gas, which still flows into the bloc. Whether negotiations will continue is now up for debate.
Brussels investigators carried out 20 searches since last Friday, including 19 private homes and one hotel used by traveling diplomats. They said they found around $630,000 worth of euros in bags in one home, and around $175,000 worth of euros in another that was divied up and hidden in expensive liquor boxes. Police also found cash in a suitcase in a Strasbourg hotel room reportedly used by a Qatar operative, and some in a parliamentarian’s office. Police also sequestered phones and computers, and froze the assets and email accounts of dozens of family members and staffers.
Kaili is the only person named officially after her lawyer defended her. The other three arrested are reportedly Italians, including Pier Antonio Panzeri who is a close associate of Kaili’s Italian life partner Francesco Giorgi, who is a parliamentary assistant. Panzeri runs an NGO group called Fight Impunity that is being investigated in the probe. His wife and daughter were taken into custody in Bergamo, Italy, over the weekend. Niccolo Figa-Talamanca, who runs an NGO called No Peace Without Justice is reportedly the fourth suspect in custody. Two other Italians within the EU leadership ranks were released after being arrested Friday.
The timing of the arrests and nature of the allegations have been a buzzkill in Qatar, which has fought off a barrage of claims in how it is handling the soccer world’s biggest event, including the death of two journalists, the rough housing of several others and the banning of beer in World Cup stadiums despite Budweiser being a major advertiser.
The EU was supposed to vote on the visa-free travel bill for Qatari citizens this week, but has postponed it indefinitely.
The scandal, indisputably the largest in the history of the bloc, brought jeers from some Euroskeptic leaders, including Hungarian president Viktor Orban, who tweeted a meme making fun of the union investigating corruption in Hungary.
Qatar has adamantly denied allegations that it tried to buy influence in the EU. No Qatari citizens have been arrested in the probe so far.
