Belgian court decides to keep EU corruption case suspect in detention

FILE PHOTO: A statue is seen in front of the courthouse of Brescia ahead of a hearing to decide whether to hand over Maria Dolores Colleoni, wife of former MEP Antonio Panzeri who was arrested in Brussels on charges of corruption in the European Parliament for the benefit of Qatar and Morocco, to the Belgian authorities, in Brescia, Italy December 19, 2022. REUTERS/Flavio Lo Scalzo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A Belgian appeals court decided on Tuesday to keep Niccolo Figa-Talamanca, an Italian suspect in a European Parliament corruption scandal, in detention after prosecutors objected to a decision to release him with an electronic tracking bracelet.

Figa-Talamanca is one of four people arrested earlier in December on charges of corruption, money laundering and criminal organisation within the European Parliament, in one of the biggest corruption scandals to hit Brussels.