Until 21 records has carried out this morning the Belgian police in homes of several Lobists of the Chinese company Huawei, Some would have been arrested, for suspicions that They could have participated in crimes of bribery, falsification, money laundering and criminal organization with members of the European Parliament.
Specifically, it is suspected that there would be bribes about a fortnight of current and old Eurodiputados, sometimes with money directly, but above all with gifts that would allow the nature of the exchange better to hide, a way of better hiding their illicit nature before the authorities and their own consciousness. All this was done through various intermediaries to hide better than the Chinese company was behind everything. In fact, of the 21 records practiced by the Police Only one has been out of Belgium, in Portugalsince when it came to cash, money was transferred from a company in this country.
Protect Huawei
The goal of Huawei’s lobists would be counteract United States attempts to exclude Chinese telecommunications companies of sensitive markets and at the same time get the European market to open Chinese companies.
At the moment only one name has been leaked: Valerio Ottati. Belgian of 41 years, former director of Public Affairs of the Office of Huawei in the European Union since 2019, which he previously exercised as a parliamentary assistant for ten years of two former Italian Eurodiputados, one from the PPE and one of the S&D. According to police sources, “for their connections. “I organized many meetings with Eurodiputados and could invite people to events.”
The investigation has been revealed by the Belgian newspapers Soir and Knack along with the media Follow the Money and Reporters United.
The broken Eurocamara
According to Le Soir’s information unlike the Qatargate scandal, which involves suitcases with money, the alleged corruption in this case would have taken above all the form of objects of objects of a certain value (including huawei smartphones), tickets for football matches (Huawei, in particular, has a private box at Lotto Park, the headquarters of the Anderlecht Soccer Club) But there would also be transfers of some thousands of euros. According to the code of conduct of the MEPs, any gift given by a third party for a value exceeding 150 euros must be declared and registered publicly in the gift record.
“Corruption would have been practiced regularly and very discreetly from 2021 to the present, under the appearance of commercial lobbying and adopting various forms, such as remuneration for political positions or even excessive gifts, such as food and trip expenses, or even periodic invitations to football matches,” confirmed the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, not to mention Huawei by name.
The researchers suspect that there would be a fortnight of MEP (current and old) involved, although for the moment, the European Parliament has not received any application for immunity lifting or records have been produced in their headquarters. In the Eurocamara, as they said in the case of Quatargate, they say they will fully cooperate with the judicial authorities.
Huawei has not reacted at the moment with respect to these information published in the press.
