Prosecutors get more time for probe into ex-Portuguese PM

Published March 17, 2017

Portugal's attorney general has granted investigators another extension to conclude their 2 1/2-year investigation into a former prime minister who is suspected of corruption, money laundering and tax fraud.

The attorney general's office says prosecutors now have at least until the end of April to decide whether to formally charge Jose Socrates or drop their case against him. The deadline for a decision had been Friday.

The Portuguese legal system is notoriously slow, but Socrates' defense lawyers say the delays in the high-profile case are scandalous.

Socrates was Portugal's center-left Socialist prime minister from 2005 to 2011.

The attorney general's office said the latest postponement is justified because of the unusual complexity of the case, which requires cooperation from foreign authorities in sifting through international money transfers.

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