Searches were carried out at the council offices in Loulé yesterday as part of Operation Marquês.
Offices at the Vale do Lobo resort in Almancil were raided in mid-May as prosecutors continue to unravel the source of millions of euros in illicit payments made to the former Prime Minister José Sócrates.
The searches carried out yesterday were linked to the raid on the offices of Vale de Lobo.
The prosecution suspects that Joaquim Baroque from Lena Group, the businessman Carlos Santos Silva, longtime friend of Sócrates, and Helder Battaglia of Vale de Lobo all are linked to a payment of €12 million that ended up earmarked for Sócrates for enabling the planning permission for the luxury resort to go ahead, unimpeded by land categorisation problems, allegedly.
Vale de Lobo comes under Loulé council and the present mayor, Victor Aleixo, came to office after the period during which these suspicious transactions took place.
The mayor at the time was Seruca Emídio who now is chairman of the advisory board for the Algarve Regional Health Administration.
While these investigations continue, José Sócrates remains in custody in Évora prison held on suspicion of qualified tax fraud, money laundering and accepting bribes.
