Arrested European Parliament vice president pleads not guilty

By Derya Gulnaz Ozcan

ATHENS (AA) - Arrested European Parliament (EP) vice president insists she has nothing to do with the money recovered by Belgium police during raids that took place last week over corruption allegations, local media said on Thursday.

Speaking to MEGA TV, one of the county’s major national broadcasters, Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, Eva Kaili’s lawyer, said that it is not clear to whom a large number of Euro banknote stashes found in nine different addresses belonged.

Reiterating that some money was also recovered from Kaili’s address, he claimed only her partner, Francesco Giorgi knows whose money it was.

“Qatar didn’t have any reason to bribe Kaili,” he added, drawing attention that her visit to Qatar was within the knowledge of the EP President Roberta Metsola.

Kaili, one of the 14 vice presidents of the European legislative body from Greece's central-left PASOK-KINAL party, was arrested on Dec. 9 by Belgium police after her house was searched on corruption charges allegedly linked to Qatar.

On Tuesday, she was removed from the European Parliament's vice presidency over allegations of corruption.

Qatar has dismissed "baseless and gravely misinformed" allegations, "categorically rejecting any attempts to associate it with accusations of misconduct."

*Writing by Ahmet Gencturk in Ankara