The Belgian judge in charge of the “Qatargate” inquiry into corruption allegations in the European Parliament has put the case on hold over concerns about a potential conflict of interest.
Michel Claise’s decision to recuse follows “a number of factors that have emerged recently”. . . (that) could raise questions about the objective functioning of the investigation,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement on Monday.
In 2018, the prosecutor’s son, Nicolas Claise, co-founded a company with Maria Arena’s son, Ugo Lemaire, the statement said. Businesses selling CBD products, a member of the European Parliament close to Pier Antonio Panzeri. Suspect in the Qatargate case.
Kleiss has left “out of an abundance of caution to allow the judiciary to continue its work calmly and to maintain the necessary separation between private and family life and professional responsibilities,” the statement said.
A spokesman for Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne said Kleis had voluntarily stepped aside to avoid a “perception of a conflict of interest”, adding: “This will not affect the outcome of the case.” process.”
Another prosecutor, Aurélie Dejaiffe, has taken over the investigation.
Kleis’ withdrawal is the latest twist in the investigation into alleged attempts by Qatar and Morocco to influence EU legislation.
The so-called Qatargate incident has rocked Brussels since December 2022, when police raided the offices of the European Parliament. They confiscated 1.5 billion euros in cash and arrested several MEPs, including Eva Kelly, a member of the Greek parliament who was the vice-president of parliament, on charges of money laundering and involvement in an organized crime group.
Arena, who was cited in the document but not questioned or charged, resigned as chair of the parliamentary human rights committee following media reports that she had failed to declare the free flights she had received from Qatar.
She was replaced as chair by Panzeri, a former MEP who admitted taking bribes and is cooperating with the investigation. His evidence has been a key part of the investigation and he has also been closely linked to Arena.
Maxim Töller, a lawyer for Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella, who was among the arrested MEPs and denies any wrongdoing, was the first to identify Nicolas • The link between Nicolas Claise and Lemaire. He called on Monday for Michelle Kleis to step down.
“What bothers me about this dossier is that he knew about the conflict of interest from the first day he cited Maria Arena’s name. Despite this, he was in charge of the case,” Töller told Belgian television station RTL News on Tuesday. .
“It appears that the relationship (between Arena and Panzeri) is much more important than what has been described so far,” he added. “They didn’t check that what (Panzeri) said was true . . . it was his words that justified the detention of my client.”
All those accused have been released pending possible trial, except for Panzeri, who remains under house arrest.
The European Parliament has discussed a series of reforms aimed at preventing a repeat of the Qatargate scandal, but critics say progress has been slow and parliament lacks the will to regulate itself.
Only half of the 14 reforms proposed by Assembly President Roberta Metsola in January have been implemented, including limiting access for former lawmakers and creating new access logs for lobbyists.
Socialist MP Gabriele Bischoff, who is leading parliamentary negotiations on an EU-wide ethics body, said the scandal came to light when the Socialist and Democratic groups to which Panzeri, Tarabella and Kaili belong were “very disappointed, it was a diplomatic statement”.
She said it was important not to “cover up” the incident but seek reforms, especially as elections for the EU’s largest elected body are due next June. “We’ve seen that self-regulation doesn’t work,” she said.
Additional reporting by Andy Bounds in Brussels