Key suspect in EU graft case granted house arrest

BRUSSELS — A Belgian judge agreed on Wednesday to release Greek MEP Eva Kaili, the public face of a graft scandal, from jail and to place her under house arrest pending prosecution on corruption charges.

Kaili's defense lawyer Sven Mary told Agence France-Presse that Kaili might not leave prison until Friday or even Monday, and only once officials have processed the paperwork and fitted her with a tracking bracelet.

"At this stage, we must give her the opportunity to be reunited with her family, and in particular her child," he said.

The scandal rocked the European Parliament, which has vowed to clean up its lobbying and transparency rules, and enraged the governments of Qatar and Morocco, which fiercely deny any connection to the cash bribes allegedly paid to influence EU policy in their favor.

Kaili, formerly a vice-president of the parliament representing the center-left political grouping, has protested her innocence throughout the investigation.

The 44-year-old ex-newsreader was the last suspect still in pretrial detention, more than four months after her arrest last year.

Four more accused, including her partner and the father of her 2-year-old daughter Francesco Giorgi, had previously been released from custody wearing electronic trackers.

According to the prosecutor's office, Kaili, who is from the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, will be allowed to reside at her Belgian address while the probe continues. She was initially arrested on Dec 9 last year when Belgian police raided a series of addresses tied to political figures in the Brussels region and seized over 1.5 million euros ($1.65 million) in cash.

Another suspect, Italian MEP Andrea Cozzolino, is being held under house arrest in Italy and is fighting his extradition to Belgium. An appeal hearing is due in Naples on May 2.

The scandal came to public attention last year. Hundreds of thousands of euros were found at a home and in a suitcase at a hotel in Brussels.

Agencies Via Xinhua