An alleged leader of a criminal network involved in an EU corruption scandal has agreed to reveal which countries were involved and how it operated.
Pier Antonio Panzeri’s lawyer said his client had agreed to “tell all” after reaching a deal with prosecutors.
The former member of the European Parliament is one of four suspects in custody in Belgium.
He is suspected of taking bribes from Qatar and Morocco in exchange for influencing parliament in Brussels.
Qatar has strongly denied that it sought to gain influence through gifts and money, while Morocco has strongly denied allegations that it compromised fishing rights and the disputed status of Western Sahara. have tried to gain influence on such issues.
The four suspects were charged last month after nearly €1.5m (£1.3m) in cash was seized during a series of raids on a flat, a house and a hotel. Police released images of €200, €50, €20 and €10 notes, including a suitcase found at the hotel full of cash.
Prosecutors said Mr. Panzeri agreed to a plea deal under a whistleblower law used only once in Belgium.
His lawyer Mark Uttendale said he admitted “criminal responsibility”, adding: “It’s important to know that this is a man who is devastated and doesn’t have much left in him. Is.”
But his client hoped he would secure his position by “agreeing to share what he knows about the case”.
Other suspects include a serving Greek MEP, Eva Kelly, who has been stripped of her role as parliament’s vice-president, her partner Francesco Giorgi, and lobbyist Niccolò Figa-Talamanca.
After Mr Panzeri, 67, left parliament, he became head of a lobby group called Fight Impunity. Mr Figà-Talamanca worked from the same building in Brussels for a separate NGO.
According to a statement from Belgium’s federal prosecutor, the former MEP agreed to a plea bargain under a law based on an Italian code for turning repentant mafia members, or “pentetti,” into state witnesses.
A spokesman said he faced a year in jail instead of a “very heavy prison sentence”, as well as a fine and €1m in asset forfeiture.
In return, it must provide details of how the network operated, what the financial arrangements were with the countries concerned, and “the involvement of known and unknown individuals in the investigation, including the identity of those they sought to bribe.” admits to giving”. .
The plea deal was issued a day after an Italian court agreed to extradite the former MEP’s daughter, Silvia Panzeri, 38, on suspicion of involvement in the scandal.
The same court in the northern city of Brescia ruled last month that Mr Panzeri’s wife, Maria Colleoni, could also be extradited, but Italy’s highest appeals court will make the final decision on her case. Both women are currently under house arrest and deny corruption and money laundering charges.
Greek MEP Eva Kelly, who also denies involvement in the case, is suspected, along with others, of taking bribes from Qatar in exchange for influencing EU policy-making.
His accomplice Francesco Giorgi admitted his role in the case last month.
However, the investigation quoted “unknown” people as saying that more revelations were to come.
Prosecutors have already tried to lift the immunity of two more centre-left MEPs, Belgium’s Marc Trabella and Italy’s Andrea Cozzolino.
Lawyers for both MEPs have denied they played any role in the scandal, but the request is being reviewed by Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee.
