Andrea Cozzolino detained as part of European Parliament corruption investigation: Report

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ISTANBUL (AA) - Italian member of European Parliament (MEP) Andrea Cozzolino detained on Friday night as part of the ongoing EP corruption investigation, Italian news agency ANSA reported on Saturday.

The detention took place in Naples at the request of the Belgian authorities after the Italian police could not locate Cozzolino in his residence, the report said.

His detention came hours after Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella's detainment on Friday morning as part of the same investigation.

The immunity of both MEPs were lifted in a plenary session last week, paving the way for investigators to detain them.

- Corruption scandal

The EU has been shaken by one of the biggest corruption scandals in its history after Eva Kaili, a Greek MEP, was arrested on Dec. 9 by Belgian police on corruption charges.

Kaili, 44, from Greece's center-left PASOK-KINAL party and one of the European Parliament's 14 vice presidents, was arrested after her home was searched on corruption charges allegedly involving Qatar, which was accused of paying Kaili to lobby for the Gulf state's interests.

Also, up to €1.5 million ($1.62 million) in cash was seized by the Belgian police across dozens of home and office searches. In addition, parliamentary computers were also requisitioned to prevent the erasure of important data.

Those detained alongside Kaili also included Italian European Parliament Deputy Pier Antonio Panzeri, Kaili's partner Francesco Giorgi, who worked as an assistant in the European Parliament, and Niccolo Figa-Talamanca, the director of the non-governmental organization working on the rule of law.