In the course of the Belgian judiciary’s investigation into the corruption and money laundering case involving politicians in the European Parliament, new elements have revealed the existence of another key player in the case: Morocco.
While revelations about the corruption and money laundering case involving MEPs and the Middle Eastern emirate have shaken the European news in recent days, new elements of the investigation have revealed the involvement of Morocco, another key player in the case, reported French daily Le Monde, on Saturday 17 December. The first link established between Qatar and Morocco is Antonio Panzeri, a former Italian MEP now imprisoned in Belgium in the “Qatar-gate” affair.
According to the investigators, through the NGO Fight Impunity, which he co-founded, the former MEP allegedly received money from Morocco to defend the interests of the Maghreb kingdom within the European institutions. BFMTV reported that during a search of the MEP’s home in Brussels, police found 700 000 euros in cash, much of which came from Morocco, according to the confession of the MEP’s assistant.
Antonio Panzeri is not the only MEP linked to Morocco in these new revelations. Among the other MEPs involved is a Frenchman: Gilles Pargneaux, former Socialist MEP and chairman of the EU-Morocco friendship group. He has accumulated numerous trips paid for by Morocco, to which other MEPs were also invited. Photos on his Facebook account also show him receiving gifts.