"According to the constitution, the permission of the Riigikogu must be obtained in order for legal proceedings against a Riigikogu member to continue. The Prosecutor's Office has now made such a referral to the Chancellor of Justice, and has also sent the evidence collected. It is now my task to ask the Riigikogu for the opportunity to make a report and to ask for Kingo's parliamentary immunity to be withdrawn. This proposal has already been forwarded to the Riigikogu," explained Madise.

The time for the debate on the potential removal of Kingo's parliamentary immunity will be determined by the Riigikogu, Madise said.

"It is now very important to say that we have the presumption of innocence. Neither the sending of such a proposal to the Riigikogu, nor the possible decision of the Riigikogu to revoke the immunity of a Member of Parliament - and the Riigikogu has previously revoked the immunity of MPs in such cases - does not mean that the person is guilty. The assessment of the evidence and [attribution of] guilt is always a matter for the court. It is the role of the Chancellor of Justice to determine whether a case is manifestly unfounded and manifestly politically motivated. And we really have not found any such indications in this case," Madise said.

If the Riigikogu gives its approval to remove Kingo's parliamentary immunity, the case will go to court. An MP who is deprived of parliamentary immunity remains a member of the Riigikogu.

Last September, Kert Kingo and lawyer Martin Traat were charged with criminal offences related to the use of a Riigikogu MP's expenses allowance. According to the allegations, Kingo used her own personal allowances to pay a total of almost €10,000 in legal fees for three separate people. In spring this year, Kingo was elected to the Riigikogu after winning 3,095 votes.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!