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Romanian prosecutors ask for lifting of MEP immunity

06 April 2011, 09:41 CET

(BUCHAREST) - Romanian anti-graft prosecutors on Tuesday asked for Romanian European deputy Adrian Severin to be stripped of his parliamentary immunity following corruption allegations.

"The anti-graft prosecution office today sent a request to the minister of justice to ask for the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of European lawmaker Adrian Severin who is under investigation" for allegedly taking bribes and influence peddling, the anti-graft prosecutors said in a statement.

The justice minister Catalin Predoiu said later that he has forwarded the request to the president of the European parliament Jerzy Buzek.

A trio of lawmakers from Austria, Romania and Slovenia are facing probes at home and in Brussels after a sting by Britain's Sunday Times newspaper reportedly showed them agreeing to take bribes of up to 100,000 euros ($140,000).

Austrian MEP Ernst Strasser and Slovenian Zoran Thaler resigned but Romanian Adrian Severin so far has refused to do so, denying having committed any illegal act.

His refusal to resign has stirred uproar in Romania.

Buzek, the head of the scandal-hit European Parliament, last week vowed "zero tolerance" on corruption as detectives probed bribery and fraud allegations against MEPs.


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