Puigdemont and Other Catalonia Separatists Report to Belgian Police<br />Mr. Puigdemont told RTBF, a Belgian television broadcaster, on Friday<br />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.<br />5, 2017<br />BRUSSELS — The former president of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont,<br />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.<br />As the case moves through the Belgian courts, Mr. Puigdemont could find himself still in Brussels by<br />the time Catalonia holds new regional elections on Dec. 21, as ordered by the Spanish government.<br />A Spanish judge issued an international arrest warrant on Friday for Mr. Puigdemont<br />and the four former members of his cabinet, who left Catalonia for Brussels.<br />Mr. Puigdemont’s Belgian lawyer, Paul Bekaert, could not be reached for comment on Sunday,<br />but he said last week that his client would cooperate fully.<br />A Belgian judge will be able to question Mr. Puigdemont<br />and the other four detainees before deciding whether to apply the international arrest warrant.
