LISBON, Portugal – A former Portuguese interior minister and other senior government officials are standing trial in a major case centered on residence permits granted to investors from outside the European Union.
The officials are charged with corruption, influence-peddling and misconduct in public office in the trial which began Monday and is expected to last several months.
Among the 21 accused are former interior minister Miguel Macedo, the former head of the Borders and Immigration Service, and a former senior official at the Justice Ministry. Three businessmen from China and one from Angola are also charged.
A police investigation in 2014 called Operation Labyrinth found evidence of an alleged web of interests operating under official cover, including in the granting of so-called golden visas to non-EU investors. The officials subsequently resigned.
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