According to the report, the documents strengthen the suspicion that Morocco may have exerted legal and illegal influence on Brussels even more intensely and for longer than Qatar. Thus, the main suspects in the case, namely former parliament member Antonio Panzeri, former European Parliament Vice President Eva Kaili, and her associate, Francesco Giorgi, have allegedly been working for Moroccan lobbyists long before purpotedly receiving funds from Qatar's representatives. Moreover, Moroccan foreign intelligence and counter-espionage service DGED has been recruiting the European Parliament's members to influence the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) in the parliament since 2019, the report said.
The newspaper does not rule out that the so-called 'Qatargate' could be soon renamed to 'Moroccogate.'
On December 9, the Belgian authorities carried out several arrests and searches in Brussels in connection with an investigation into allegations of corruption in the European Parliament associated with the holding of the World Cup in Qatar and illicit lobbying in favor of the Gulf monarchy and Morocco. In particular, Kaili and her partner, Giorgi, were detained, and their residences were searched. Kaili was relieved of her office and expelled from her political party in Greece. Belgian law enforcement officers reportedly seized over 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million) in cash during the searches. According to a French newspaper, Kaili confessed that she had given her father in Brussels a bag with cash, which he was supposed to hide. She also admitted that there had been money in her apartment. Kaili’s father had earlier been detained with a large sum of money in a hotel in the Belgian capital.
Panzeri was arrested on December 10 in his apartment in Brussels, where the police seized 600,000 euros ($637,000). Panzeri, who is considered a mastermind behind the corruption scheme, has partially admitted his involvement in the scandal, according to LeSoir.
On Wednesday, Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne told the Financial Times that the Belgian-led investigation into alleged bribery in the European Parliament has reached a scale typical of investigations into organized crime.