Former EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini has been detained for questioning in Belgium after police raids on the College of Europe in Bruges and the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels, in a fraud investigation led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).
Mogherini is among three suspects arrested on Tuesday in connection with suspected irregularities around an EU-funded training programme for junior diplomats.
The EPPO confirmed that Belgian federal police carried out searches at several College of Europe buildings in Bruges, at the EEAS headquarters in Brussels and at the private homes of suspects, and that three individuals were detained.
The operation is part of a probe into alleged fraud involving EU funds linked to the European Union Diplomatic Academy, a nine-month training programme for junior diplomats financed by the EEAS for the 2021–22 period.
Officers also searched Mogherini’s private residence in Bruges before taking her into custody for questioning. She currently serves as rector of the College of Europe and director of the European Union Diplomatic Academy, placing her at the centre of the EU-funded project now under scrutiny. Two other figures from diplomatic circles were also detained. According to Belgian media, they are an unnamed manager at the College of Europe and Stefano Sannino, an Italian diplomat and former Secretary-General of the European External Action Service; both have been held for questioning.
In its public statement, EPPO said the investigation focuses on whether the College of Europe and/or its representatives were informed in advance of the selection criteria for the tender to run the Diplomatic Academy and whether they had reason to believe they would secure the contract before the EEAS officially launched the call. Prosecutors say there are strong suspicions that fair-competition rules under Article 169 of the EU Financial Regulation were breached and that confidential information linked to the procurement may have been shared with one of the candidates.
The possible offences under examination include procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest and breach of professional secrecy. The case was initially flagged to the EU’s anti-fraud office Olaf, which carried out administrative inquiries before transmitting its findings to EPPO. Olaf is now supporting the criminal investigation.
Investigators are also looking at financial decisions connected to the programme. Reporting has highlighted the College of Europe’s 2022 purchase of a residential building in Bruges, valued at around €3.2 million, which now houses participants in the Diplomatic Academy, and the subsequent award of roughly €654,000 in EEAS funding for the training scheme. The tender required bidders to demonstrate they could provide suitable accommodation, and investigators are examining whether advance knowledge of the tender conditions could have influenced those moves.
Before Tuesday’s raids, EPPO requested the lifting of immunity for several suspects, a step that was granted by the competent authorities, allowing searches and arrests to proceed. During the operations, documents and electronic devices were seized from College of Europe premises, EEAS offices and private homes in Belgium.
The College of Europe’s leadership has said it was informed only after the searches were under way. Herman Van Rompuy, former President of the European Council and chairman of the college’s board, told Belgian media he learned of the police operation around midday and had no detailed information about the reasons for the raids or the detentions.
Mogherini served as Italy’s foreign minister before becoming EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. She took up the post of rector at the College of Europe in September 2020 and, according to the institution, began a second mandate in September 2025. She is also listed as director of the European Union Diplomatic Academy implemented by the college.
Her appointment as rector drew criticism at the time from some academics and commentators, who questioned her limited academic background and raised concerns about the closeness of the relationship between the college and EU institutions. Van Rompuy was seen as having played a key role in promoting her candidacy. Those earlier debates have now been revived by news of her detention in a case that directly concerns an EU-funded project run by the college.
The period under investigation overlaps with the mandate of Josep Borrell as EU High Representative and head of the EEAS from 2019 to 2024. There is currently no public indication that Borrell or his successor, Kaja Kallas, is under investigation. EPPO has not named any suspects and has declined to provide further details while the case is ongoing.
Neither Mogherini nor the College of Europe has issued a detailed public response to the allegations. The EEAS and the European Commission have confirmed that searches took place but have stated that they will not comment while the investigation continues. All those detained are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty by a competent court.
