Belgian police have arrested three people, including former top EU diplomat Federica Mogherini, and raided the headquarters of the EU foreign service and Europe’s elite college as part of an investigation into suspected fraud.
The three were detained “as part of an investigation into suspected fraud relating to EU-funded training for junior diplomats,” the European Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement, without naming the individuals.
Belgian newspaper De Standard, citing judicial sources, was the first to report that Mogherini, now rector of the College of Europe, was among the three arrested.
A source confirmed to the Guardian that Mogherini was among those captured. The Belgian newspaper said two other people from “diplomatic circles” were also arrested on possible “procurement fraud, corruption and conflict of interest.” The College of Europe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Guardian understands that Stefano Sannino, secretary-general of the EU’s external action service between 2021 and 2024 and now director-general of the European Commission, was among those arrested. Belgian media also reported his name. Sannino, an Italian official, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
A spokesperson for the European Commission confirmed that “an investigation is underway into activities that took place in the previous mandate” but declined to answer further questions, including naming the suspects.
Police searched several buildings of the EU Foreign Service in Brussels, the headquarters of the European External Action Service, as well as the College of Europe in Bruges at the request of the Prosecutor’s Office. The prosecutor’s office said the suspects’ homes were also searched.
It said an investigation was underway “to assess whether any criminal offenses have been committed”, adding: “All individuals are considered innocent until proven guilty by the competent Belgian courts.”
Mogherini led the EU Foreign Service from 2014 to 2019, after serving for a few months as Italian Foreign Minister. She became rector of the EU-funded College of Europe in 2020, a controversial choice for some alumni who claimed she lacked the scholarly credentials or experience of running a complex academic structure. The College of Europe, established in Bruges in 1949, has served as a postgraduate training ground for countless EU officials and diplomats.
The case is an unprecedented investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), the only EU body handling criminal cases, which was launched in 2021 to tackle cross-border fraud involving EU funds. The EPPO can bring criminal cases in the courts of any of the 24 EU member states it joins, including Belgium.
The case focuses on whether the College of Europe and its representatives were informed in advance about the tender for a training program for young diplomats before the official start of the bidding process.
The EPPO said it had “strong suspicions” that fair competition rules had been violated and that confidential information had been shared with one of the candidates participating in the tender. The College of Europe in Bruges was awarded the contract to run the European Union Diplomatic Academy in 2021–22 following a decision by the Foreign Service of the European Union. The EPPO said the immunity of the three suspects had been lifted at its request.
The EPPO declined to provide further details about the case beyond its initial statement so as to “not jeopardize the ongoing procedures and their outcomes”.
An EU diplomat said they were glad the EPPO was working “and not afraid to go after big names”, adding: “If the allegations are true, they should be given a tough sentence to send a clear message that corruption of any kind cannot be tolerated in the EU.”
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