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'Bribery' lobbyist Mensdorff-Pouilly in London house arrest

An Austrian lobbyist accused of bribery was released on bail after being put in custody in London last Friday.

Britain�s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said last night (Thurs) that Burgenland-based Alfons Mensdorff-Pouilly was released in return for a 500,000 GBP (572,672 Euros) bail.

The anti-corruption body said that Mensdorff-Pouilly � suspected of being involved in bribery of political leaders in connection with the acquisition of jet fighters by Central and Eastern European countries � is under house arrest between midnight and 6am, adding he had been issued with electronic ankle tags.

Mensdorff-Pouilly � who owns estates in Austria and Scotland � also had to hand in his passport, it has been reported.

SEO said the next hearing in the case would take place next Wednesday.

Officials reportedly hope to make a decision over whether the husband of former People�s Party (�VP) Health Minister Maria Rauch-Kallat will be charged or not this month.

The authority said they cooperated with Austrian officials in arresting Mensdorff-Pouilly. Prosecutors in Vienna have been investigating his alleged malpractices for one and a half years.

Mensdorff-Pouilly�s lawyer Harald Schuster is expected to comment on the developments today. Schuster earlier this week said British investigators had sent a letter to him. The lawyer however refused to reveal its contents, saying he would not comment on the issue until today.

Mensdorff-Pouilly � who is not allowed to call himself a count or an aristocrat or make use of his aristocratic family line due to Austrian laws banning aristocratic titles after World War I � is accused of bribing government officials in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Austria between 2002 and 2008.

The 56-year-old � whose land owner father passed away earlier this year � is alleged to have made illegal payments of around 12 million Euros in return for contracts to deliver Gripen fighter jets produced by British defence company BAE Systems.

Austrian Times

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