Off the wire
• Gold futures rise after U.S. payrolls data  • Grand Chinese New Year Concert makes debut in Lithuania  • Portugal expresses concern with Israel's settlement plan  • UN expresses concern over civilian displacement in northeast Aleppo  • Latvia's industrial output shows steady growth in 2016  • Cuba says U.S. economic blockade "fiasco" after 55 years in place  • U.S. President Trump signs executive actions to review banking law, retirement saving rule  • France, Russia top diplomats hold phone conversation over Syria, Ukraine  • Paris prosecutor says Louvre attack suspect Egyptian national  • EU urged to take urgent action to deal with refugee deaths in Mediterranean  
You are here: 　 Home

Former Portuguese PM prosecuting Portuguese state

Xinhua, February 4, 2017 Adjust font size:

Former Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates is prosecuting the Portuguese state for surpassing the maximum time limit for "Operation Marques," local media reported on Friday.

Operation Marques has led Socrates to be arrested in November 2014.

He spent over 9 months in preventive prison, having been accused of fiscal fraud, money laundering and passive corruption.

Socrates, prime minister from 2005 to 2011, filed a lawsuit against the Lisbon Administrative Court on Friday, local television broadcaster SIC reported.

"The foundation of this action is a scandalous violation of the maximum legal time frame of the investigation." he said during press conference on Friday night, according to local media.

"The longest period for an investigation based on our criminal procedure code is 18 months, and this investigation has been going on for 42 months," Socrates added.

Since the first interrogation in November 2014, the country's public ministry hasn't made any prosecutions.

A decision by the Central Department of Investigation and Penal action is expected to take place on March 17. Endit