Giuseppe Cirillo, 01 March 2023
Bribery followed by fraud, 170,000 euros seized from Lega Italia MEP Stefania Zambelli.
Antonio Panzeri, like a swollen river, continues to provide names and information to the public prosecutor Michel Claise, who has been investigating for some time a case that is strongly shaking the European Parliament. Now, the list of names that Panzeri has provided - as reported in 'La Repubblica' - should include the name of former Forza Italia MEP Lara Comi. "In the spring of 2019, a meeting took place in Doha with Minister Al Marri, Francesco Giorgi, the Algerian (Boudjellal, ed.) and myself (Panzeri, ed.), Andrea Cozzolino, Lara Comi. I think Eva Kaili was present, but the decision taken regarding the money for the deputies also concerned her," Panzeri pointed out, "In the end, the Qataris decided to make 250,000 euros each available for the election campaigns of these three. And that's what happened." he continued, "It's important to dispel the idea that I'm the big boss," Panzeri stressed. "These people accepted money in exchange for protecting Qatari interests as part of their parliamentary work. It was agreed that Giorgi would take on the role of Cozzolino's assistant. The money arrived at his home, one million two hundred and fifty thousand euros in cash. There was also 250,000 euros for me and for him'.
Antonio Panzeri also told how Comi called him to ask him to look after a bag that was in his apartment in Brussels.
"In 2019, Comi called me and asked me for a favor to see if I could pick up the bag from his apartment in Brussels and put it aside." Comi's bag was allegedly taken into custody by Panzeri's assistant Giuseppe Meroni and after Lara Comi's arrest in the "Mensa dei poveri" investigation, Antonio Panzeri allegedly went to Meroni to open the bag and check its contents. "Following the situation, I went to Meroni and we opened the bag. Inside I saw some empty clothes and books and cash between 60 and 70 thousand euros, I didn't count it. So I took everything and decided to throw the money in the garbage. Meroni saw the money but didn't take anything". Panzeri went on to say that 'after opening the bag, he called Lara Comi to inform her of the decision I had made. 'I only told her that the money was no longer there,' Panzeri continued, 'I told her that the case was closed and she did not ask me any more questions. I don't know where the money in the bag came from'.
Susanna Camusso is also among the names.
Panzeri also recalled the alleged funding of Susanna Camusso's campaign for the 2018 WFTU presidency from Qatar. 'It was Giorgi, Al Marri, an Algerian and me,' Panzeri recalled, 'I was asked who the Italian candidate was. I said I knew Camusso because we were in the same union. They told me they would like to meet her and help her. I spoke to her in Milan,' Panzeri recalls, 'and she told me she was available for this meeting, which took place a few weeks later'. Specifying that it was not about money, but about helping African trade unions and the Middle East'. Panzeri continued. "Before that, we discovered the sum of 600,000 euros (...) which the Algerian had handed over to me in a bag and which constituted a significant part of the money found in my house. Then I learned that only 50,000 was enough. That left me with 500 000, which I kept'.
Panzeri's testimony was followed up by Susanna Camusso, who said: 'I was not asked for any support from Qatar, nor was there ever any talk of money. I know that some donations were received from other associations for poorer organisations. I was not directly involved and do not know the details".
Not only bribes
Unfortunately, in addition to the Qatargate case, there is also the alleged fraud committed by Stefania Zambelli, a member of the Lega Nord party, who is currently under investigation by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) in Milan, because, according to prosecutors, she allegedly used European Parliament funds to pay the salaries of "four staff members" for activities that were never carried out or only partially carried out. As a result of the allegations against Zambelli and her four assistants, the European Public Prosecutor's Office and the Guardia di Finanza made a seizure of more than 170 000 euros against the MEP from Brescia.
"According to the evidence," the European Public Prosecutor's Office said, "the four staff members did not carry out activities related to the function for which they were hired or only partially carried them out and falsely documented their activities in the European Parliament. In addition, they misrepresented their educational background by declaring education and professional skills that the investigation concluded they did not have. We believe that a Member of the European Parliament, who was closely related to at least one of the persons hired, also benefited from the sums paid by the European Parliament for the work that the staff members were supposed to have performed'. An associate of the MEP's daughter is also reportedly under investigation as part of the same investigation: AC Milan football fan Marco Pacini.
In this context, "Europa Today" reported on the note issued by Stefania Zambelli to deny all the accusations against her. "With regard to the facts that led to the preventive detention of my person, I would like to make it clear that neither I nor my colleagues have committed any wrongdoing. Our work has always been characterised by the utmost loyalty and transparency towards institutions and society," Zambelli said. "I would like to point out that the parliamentary assistant whose complaint was the reason for these proceedings is the same person who denounced me in the European Parliament in 2019 with the same arguments." In these circumstances - Stefania Zambelli continued - "this assistant was dismissed for the same facts on the basis of the results of the legal proceedings for just cause, according to the information I received from the European Parliament officials themselves, while no action was taken against me. I am fully at the disposal of the judicial authorities for any clarification'.
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