Three suspects have been detained after Belgian police raided the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels and the College of Europe in Bruges on Tuesday.
Led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Brussels, the operation is part of a probe into suspected fraud related to EU-funded training for junior diplomats.
The Federal Police of West Flanders conducted searches in several buildings of the College of Europe in Bruges, the EEAS in Brussels, and at the houses of suspects, according to a statement from the EPPO.
Ten plain-clothed police officers entered the headquarters of the EEAS – the diplomatic arm of the EU – at 07:30 on Tuesday morning, according to an eyewitness who spoke to Euractiv.
The EU-funded training program in question is the European Union Diplomatic Academy – a nine-month training program for junior diplomats across Member States.
The tender was awarded by the European External Action Service to the College of Europe in Belgium for the 2021–2022 period.
The former head of the EU's foreign office (EEAS) and current rector of the College of Europe, Federica Mogherini, is reportedly among the three arrested, according to Dutch-speaking Belgian public media VRT, citing a "good" source.
The Italian diplomat became head of the College of Europe in September 2020 and director of the diplomatic academy in August 2022.
The Headquarters of the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels, credit: The Brussels Times
According to various media, Stefano Sannino, who was the Secretary General of the EEAS from 2021 to 2025, was also arrested. Today, he is the general manager of the Middle East, North Africa and Gulf Service at the European Commission.
Investigators are looking into whether the College of Europe was informed in advance about the selection criteria for the tender process, and whether they were told they would be awarded the project before the official publication of the tender notice.
There are strong suspicions that confidential information on the procurement was shared with one of the candidates participating in the tender.
With this, the EPPO requested the lifting of the immunity of several suspects, which was subsequently granted. The facts were first reported to the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), who supported the investigation.
The authorities now seek to establish whether the crimes of procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest and violation of professional secrecy have been breached.
The investigation is also supported by Belgium’s investigating judge in West-Flanders (district of Ypres).
The European Commission declined to comment during its daily briefing on Wednesday. A spokesperson confirmed police searches at EEAS premises, stating they are part of an ongoing investigation, but provided no further details.
