The Underside of Giorgi’s Release From Prison for Kaili
Greek MEP’s husband is free with a bracelet – She remains in custody despite being a mother – The link with the Pantseri-prosecutor agreement
The news that Francesco Giorgi will be released with restrictive conditions, the most basic of which is the electronic “bracelet”, has raised several questions for those following QatarGate developments. Giorgi was one of the first arrested when the Belgian authorities began to unravel the network that would have favored the interests of Qatar, but also of other countries such as Morocco, in the European Parliament. Greek MEP Eva Kaili, wife of Giorgi, was the highest-ranking European Parliament official to be arrested, as she served as the body’s vice-president.
Last week, Kaili, through his lawyers, requested his release from prison. Unlike Giorgi, the Belgian court rejected the request, even though it is a mother with a daughter only 2 years old, and confirmed the continued detention for another two months. If there is no cancellation, Kaili will remain in detention for at least 5 months.
Pre-trial detention aims, at least formally, to ensure that an accused will not repeat the crime for which he is accused, will not destroy evidence related to that particular crime, and will not escape to avoid being convicted by the Court. Three months after the first QatarGate arrests, with many other MEPs and European Parliament officials implicated and under surveillance, the choice of Belgian justice to release Giorgi while detaining Kaili raises questions.
A possible interpretation is related to the accused as network leader Antonio Pancheri. According to the information in the file and the progress of the investigations, the latter was the former MEP, who through Giorgi, who was his close collaborator, guided both Kaili and other elected officials. His agreement to “confess” to obtain a reduced sentence probably includes specific provisions (favorable or not) for his close associates, such as Giorgi.
Moreover, Belgian justice could hardly justify that after the agreement with Panzeri, it also releases the most senior MEP among those involved in the case.
In terms of statements, Giorgi covered for Kayli, taking responsibility and asking to be released. In practice, her own release further undermines her lawyers’ argument that she should be close to her daughter. From now on, her father will be present at her side, in addition to Kaili’s father who takes care of the 2-year-old.
The prosecution does not seem to have been convinced of Kaili’s “ignorance”, among other things in relation to a series of information on the amounts trafficked through the network.
Publications and leaks of information from the file spoke of millions of euros up to Panama, while these are funds well above the 1.5 million euros identified so far.
Source: Morocco mail
