A Milan court on Tuesday ruled against
a request by Belgian prosecutors investigating the so-called
Qatargate case to hand over Monica Rossana Bellini, the
accountant of former MEP Antonio Panzeri, one of the central
figures in the scandal.
The Milan court of appeal said that the accusations in a
European arrest warrant issued by the Belgium prosecutors, and
under which Bellini was arrested in January, were "vague".
It said requests for clarification regarding accusations of
money laundering, corruption and criminal association against
her had been met by "persistent silence".
Panzeri was released to house arrest last month, having been in
prison since December 9 in relation to a probe into alleged
attempts by Qatar and Morocco to influence EU affairs via
bribery.
He has started to cooperate with Belgian prosecutors after
reaching a plea bargain for a one-year jail term.
He is one of several Italians implicated in the case.
These include his former assistant Francesco Giorgi, the partner
of Greek MEP Eva Kaili, who was removed from her position as
European Parliament vice president after the scandal exploded,
and Italian MEP Andrea Cozzolino.
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