Detained MEP and former Vice-President of the European Parliament Eva Kaili does not have a Panamanian bank account in which she allegedly deposited checks from Qatar, her lawyer said on Thursday.
In a statement, one of Kaili's lawyers, Michalis Dimitrakopoulos, cited a Bladex Bank statement dated to December 21 (https://www.bladex.com/en/node/784), which denied any relation to people involved in the case. These include Eva Kaili, Dimitrakopoulos said.
The bank stated, among others, the following:
"We firmly ratify that after conducting a thorough search and due diligence of our internal records and operations there is no direct or indirect relation of any kind to the persons that are being questioned in the above-mentioned case.
"Moreover, our bank does not provide banking services to individuals and does not make third-party payments. Therefore, we can undoubtedly affirm that the information and images that have been circulating are false."
Dimitrakopoulos said the false reports were therefore refuted, while he asserted that "in the immediate future it will be proven that the cash found in the apartment she shares with her partner is not hers and bears no relation to Ms Kaili's political activity."