Puigdemont and Other Catalonia Separatists Report to Belgian Police

Puigdemont and Other Catalonia Separatists Report to Belgian Police
Mr. Puigdemont told RTBF, a Belgian television broadcaster, on Friday
that he was "completely available to cooperate" with the Belgian court system, which he called "the real justice." "At this point there are no guarantees of getting a just and independent trial which could escape the enormous pressure and influence of politics on the judicial powers in Spain," Mr. Puigdemont said.
5, 2017
BRUSSELS — The former president of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont,
and four former members of his regional government turned themselves in to the Belgian police on Sunday morning, a spokesman for the Brussels prosecutor’s office said.
As the case moves through the Belgian courts, Mr. Puigdemont could find himself still in Brussels by
the time Catalonia holds new regional elections on Dec. 21, as ordered by the Spanish government.
A Spanish judge issued an international arrest warrant on Friday for Mr. Puigdemont
and the four former members of his cabinet, who left Catalonia for Brussels.
Mr. Puigdemont’s Belgian lawyer, Paul Bekaert, could not be reached for comment on Sunday,
but he said last week that his client would cooperate fully.
A Belgian judge will be able to question Mr. Puigdemont
and the other four detainees before deciding whether to apply the international arrest warrant.