SARONNO – In 650 pages, the judges of the Milan Court have explained the reasons for the conviction – on October 2nd – of the Forza Italia political representative Lara Comi to four years and two months in the trial dubbed ‘Mensa dei poveri’ (Soup kitchen for the poor) which saw politicians and entrepreneurs accused of an alleged bribery scheme. In the last few hours, the MEP from Saronno commented on the motivations: “I am innocent! I have never taken European funds for myself and my family, nor have I ever participated in corrupt agreements. I believe that the sentence is unjust and contradictory: the statement of responsibility is based only on questionable circumstantial evidence. The above will be demonstrated in the appeal that my lawyer will present”. Comi, who has already announced her intention to appeal, emphasized: “What strikes me the most is the violation, to my detriment, of the presumption of innocence, as it is hypothesized that I could, as a parliamentarian elected directly by the citizens, commit other crimes to the detriment of the European Parliament, an institution that I have always served with dedication and passion in the interest of the citizens”. Reporting on the statements of the Saronno native, La Repubblica, which recalled how in the various stages of the trial Comi had repeatedly stated: “I have nothing to hide and I have always operated in compliance with the law. As proof of this, I did not avail myself of parliamentary immunity, leaving the judiciary, which had not requested any authorization, to use conversations, chats, emails, with the awareness that such documentation would prove my innocence”. The story began in November 2019 when Comi was placed under house arrest, which was later revoked, on charges of corruption, false invoicing, and fraud against the European Parliament. But what does the 650-page document say about the Saronno native? “Lara Comi’s entire European journey has been characterized, from the beginning, by an illicit management of the allocation system by the Parliament and by a blatant and conscious violation of all written rules. Since November 2022 (Comi) has returned to being a European parliamentarian, and still is despite the mala gestio (mismanagement) that the acts have highlighted”. And furthermore: “Comi, moreover, since November 2022 – the judges underline – has returned to being a European parliamentarian, and still is despite the mala gestio that the acts have highlighted and without having returned anything, in a context of very high risk of repetition of similar facts”.
