Belgian investigators have called two Ryanair executives for questioning as part of a fraud investigation at a local promotional company partly owned by the Irish discount airline, a Belgian prosecutor said today.
Charleroi's public prosecutor said that the examining magistrate leading the investigation had called on Ryanair's Chief Operating Officer Michael Cawley and Bernard Berger, head of flights development, to answer questions.
The prosecutor said the examining magistrate was looking into suspected fraud and misuse of funds allocated to the promotional company, known as Promocy, from the Walloon regional government.
'We want to know if the money was diverted into some other pocket than airport services,' he told the Reuters news agency, confirming reports published earlier in the day in two regional newspapers.
The investigation, which opened last March, did not imply any wrongdoing on the part of the executives or the airline, he said.
Promocy is jointly owned by Ryanair and the airport's operator in the southern city of Charleroi where the airline has one of its European hubs. It is in charge of publicising flights and fares in Belgium.
Pierre Fernement, spokesman for the airport operator, Brussels South Charleroi Airport (BSCA), said it was collaborating with the investigation and some of its executives had already been questioned. BSCA denied any wrongdoing, he said.
* Ryanair today signed a new, long-term, hotel supply agreement with NeedaHotel.com, its current supplier. The agreement extends the commercial relationship between both companies for a minimum of at least five years.
