Portugal's former Socialist prime minister Jose Socrates was arrested Friday as part of an inquiry into tax fraud, corruption and money laundering, the public prosecutor's office announced.
Socrates is one of four people who have been held in recent days, three of whom appeared before a judge on Friday, the prosecutor said in a statement.
More than 60 police, customs officers and justice officials carried out raids at several unspecified locations ahead of the arrests.
Socrates, 57, was arrested in the afternoon as he arrived at Lisbon airport and will appear in court on Saturday, according to Portuguese media.
The investigation centres on bank operations and money transfers from an unknown source, the prosecutor's office said.
But it made clear that the case under which Socrates was held is not linked to the arrest in July of Ricardo Saldago, former head of stricken Portuguese lender Banco Espirito Santo (BES).
The news of Socrates' arrest comes hard on the heels of another scandal which cost Portugal's Interior Minister Miguel Macedo his job on Sunday.
Macedo resigned after several senior government officials were arrested as part of a probe into money laundering and influence peddling around so-called "golden visas".
Under the "golden visa" scheme, foreign investors buying property worth 500,000 euros ($620,000) or more and keeping it for at least five years receive residency rights in Portugal and, more importantly, visa-free travel throughout the European Union's Schengen zone.
Portugal rolled out the programme in 2012 while grappling with a debt crisis.
Deputy Prime Minister Paulo Portas said Thursday it would be a mistake to stop offering wealthy foreign investors the "golden visas".
Socialist Socrates, who has described himself as a "ferocious animal" when it comes to campaigning, resigned in 2011 after the parliamentary opposition, led by the Social Democrats, rejected his minority government's fourth austerity package in just under a year.
Two weeks later Portugal was forced to request a bailout package from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund because of its inability to meet its refinancing obligations, a move Socrates had resisted for months.
Socrates led the Socialists to their first majority in parliament in 2005 a year after he was elected leader of the party.
The former premier faced several other controversies which tarnished his image during his six years in power.
He has faced repeated questions over clearance he gave for the construction of a shopping mall on protected land near Lisbon when he was environment minister, just days before a 2002 general election in which the Socialists lost power.
An investigation into the so-called "Freeport" case, named after the shopping mall, was finally shelved in July 2010.
There have been questions, too, over the authenticity of his university degree.
After he left office, Socrates studied at the institute of policy studies in Paris before returning to Portugal to start a new career as a commentator on RTP public television.
AFP
Sat Nov 22 2014
Portugal's former Socialist prime minister Jose Socrates was arrested November 21, 2014 as part of an inquiry into tax fraud, corruption and money laundering, the public prosecutor's office announced. - AFP PHOTO / PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA /FILES
KKR, CIDB zahir hasrat hantar pekerja ke Nagasaki teroka kemahiran TVET
KKR menerusi agensinya Lembaga Pembangunan Industri Pembinaan Malaysia (CIDB) berhasrat memulakan penghantaran pekerja ke Nagasaki, Jepun menjelang suku keempat tahun ini.
Piala Thomas: Leong Jun Hao lakar kebangkitan, pastikan kemenangan Malaysia!
Leong Jun Hao melakar kebangkitan memastikan Malaysia memperoleh kemenangan ke atas wakil Hong Kong, Angus Ng Ka Long.
1MDB: Prosiding Najib julung kali dibuat pada Sabtu
Perbicaraan pertama dibuat pada hujung minggu ini berlangsung tepat jam 8.30 pagi, selepas bekas Perdana Menteri itu dibawa pihak berkuasa dengan menaiki kenderaan dari Jabatan Penjara.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu: Kerajaan Perpaduan akan dibebani isu semasa - Muhyiddin
PRK ini bakal jadi referendum untuk rakyat suarakan pandangan yang disifatkan Muhyiddin sebagai perasaan tidak puas hati.
Pelajar PhD USIM ambil ujian di sebalik runtuhan di Gaza
Pelajar PhD USIM warga Palestin nekad menjalani Ujian Kelayakan yang dijalankan secara dalam talian pada Jumaat walaupun berdepan risiko dibom tentera Zionis pada bila-bila masa.
UMNO dan BN dokong calon PH demi Kerajaan Perpaduan - Ahmad Zahid
Presiden UMNOsedar taktik pihak tertentu yang cuba melaga-lagakan parti pimpinannya dengan parti komponen Pakatan Harapan itu.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu saksikan pertandingan empat penjuru
Keempat-empat calon itu ialah Khairul Azhari Saut (PN), Pang Sock Tao (PH), Nyau Ke Xin (Bebas) dan Hafizah Zainudin (Parti Rakyat Malaysia).
3 maut, 5 parah nahas dua pacuan empat roda
Tiga maut, lima parah dalam kemalangan membabitkan dua kenderaan pacuan empat roda di Jalan Kuala Krai-Gua Musang kira-kira jam 12.30 pagi tadi.
Penunjuk perasaan pro-Palestin di Paris kepung universiti
Penunjuk perasaan pro-Palestin mengepung bangunan dan kawasan hadpaan Universiti Sciences Po yang berprestij di Paris pada Jumaat.
Piala Thomas: Zii Jia pamer magis tarik perhatian ramai di Chengdu
Zii Jia merekodkan kemenangan ke atas Lee Cheuk Yiu dalam aksi yang mengambil masa 45 minit menghadirkan saat-saat terbaik dalam saingan pembukaan ini.
Women for zero corruption
If Latheefa Koya's appointment as the new MACC chief goes unchallenged, Malaysia will see the first woman leading the war against corruption.
[OPINION] Opportunity from chaos
The biggest clandestine threat is the evaporation of the middle class across the developed world.
PM, Kabinet, Ketua Institusi perlu isytihar harta - Akhbar Satar
Datuk Akhbar Satar turut mencadangkan supaya proses tersebut turut dilakukan pasangan masing-masing dan ahli keluarga terdekat.
China to alter law as it steps up fight against graft fugitives
China plans to change its law to allow judgments to be delivered in corruption cases even when the suspects do not appear in court.
Presiden FIFA: Pemilihan semula Sepp Blatter disambut sinis
Ikrar Blatter bebaskan FIFA dari kemelut rasuah antara yang jadi sindiran.