Tarabella is suspected of receiving perks from the Gulf state of Qatar. Cozzolino is also said to have been influenced by Morocco. The two deputies reject the allegations.
“I’m innocent,” Tarabella said after the vote. However, he will work extensively with the judiciary and “primarily provide information on your questions”. At Tarabella, the investigators had also searched his private rooms as part of raids in December. Until recently, one of the main suspects in the corruption affair, Francesco Giorgi, worked for Cozzolino.
Giorgi is in custody alongside three other suspects. Among them is his partner, the deposed Vice President of Parliament Eva Kaili. The Belgian judiciary accuses them of “corruption”, “membership of a criminal organization” and “money laundering”. A total of 1.5 million euros in cash were confiscated in the scandal.
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