While the authorities are continuing their investigations into Qatargate, a DW report citing Panzeri’s transcribed statements, brings to light new information about the ring’s modus operandi, as well as Eva Kaili’s involvement.
Panzeri alleges that Qatar began expanding its network of influence in EU institutions in late 2017. After meetings in early 2018 with the Gulf country’s labor minister, Ali Bin Samih Al Marri, Qatar agreed to gives him and his partner Kaili one million euros per year, for the two years 2018-2019.
Qatar funded Kaili’s re-election campaign
Continuing his testimony, the former MEP states that because he failed to be re-elected, he founded the NGO “Fight Impunity” in order to continue his action in favor of Qatar. Furthermore, he maintains that Kaili received the sum of 250,000 euros from Qatar to finance her re-election campaign in the European Parliament.
Although not all the details regarding the transfer of the money have been released, as noted by DW, Panzeri claimed that a large part of the amount from Qatar reached their hands through a “Turkish businessman and his lawyer in London”. Panzeri also claimed that another compatriot of the MEP received cash and that he met with interlocutors involved in the corruption ring.
Where did the corruption scandal begin?
According to the leaked statements, it appears that the scandal started with Morocco, not Qatar. The relationship of the former MEP, Antonio Panzeri, with the Moroccan ambassador to Poland, Abderrahim Atmoun, begins in 2012 and that the Moroccan diplomat gave him 50,000 euros in 2014 for a pre-election rally in Milan.
According to the documents, Atmun paid for luxury trips to Morocco for Kaili, her partner Francesco Giorgi and two other MEPs, Italian Andrea Coccolino and Belgian Maria Arena.
From 2019 onwards, Morocco started sending bags of money, when Panzeri and Giorgi agreed to receive 50,000 euros a year in order to create a good image of the North African country in EU policy-making circles in Brussels.
He made the same agreement with Mauritania. Panzeri said that all this lasted only in 2019 and that he and Giorgi received two payments of 50,000 euros each. Morocco’s government, DW says, has denied any involvement in the corruption scandal, while Mauritania did not respond to a request for comment.
Panzeri disclaims his responsibilities
During the depositions, Panzeri wanted to renounce the leading role claiming that he was not the “big boss”. In fact, in order to achieve this he “ratted on” the partner of Eva Kaili and his former parliamentary assistant, Francesco Giorgi, as the one who had the main order.
In particular, he mentioned that Giorgi was handing out envelopes and bags of cash to those involved in the scandal, including himself. Afterwards, the former MEP stated that he had approached the arrested Mark Tarabella with an initial sum of 20,000 euros.
Panzeri also said that the total amount that Tarabela received was 140,000 euros. The Italian former MEP also said that in 2021 he wanted to change the system as “he had already accumulated so much cash, that he didn’t know what to do with it”. Also, people close to Panzeri told DW that Panzeri’s physical and mental condition “is deteriorating significantly” while he remains in prison.
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