Belgian police on Tuesday detained Federica Mogherini, the European Union's former top diplomat, as part of a fraud investigation that included raids at the bloc's diplomatic headquarters in Brussels and the elite College of Europe in Bruges.

The European Public Prosecutor's Office said three people were taken into custody in connection with suspected fraud involving an EU-funded training program for junior diplomats. The office did not name the suspects, but Belgian and Italian media reported that Mogherini was among those detained. A source confirmed her identity to the Guardian.

Stefano Sannino, a senior Italian diplomat who served as secretary-general of the EU's External Action Service from 2021 to 2024 and now holds a director-general position in the European Commission, was also detained, according to Agence France-Presse and Belgian media outlets.

The investigation marks the first time the European Public Prosecutor's Office, established in 2021 to combat cross-border fraud involving EU funds, has targeted officials of such prominence.

Probe centers on diplomatic academy contract

The case revolves around the European Union Diplomatic Academy, a nine-month training program for junior diplomats across the bloc's 27 member states. The program was awarded to the College of Europe by the EU's diplomatic service, the European External Action Service, in 2021-2022 following a tender process.

The prosecutor's office said it had "strong suspicions" that confidential information related to the procurement was shared with one of the candidates before the official launch of the bidding process.

"There are strong suspicions that the rules on fair competition had been breached," the office said in a statement. The facts, if proven, "could constitute procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest and violation of professional secrecy."

The prosecutor's office said it had requested and obtained the lifting of immunity for several suspects prior to the searches. Belgian federal police conducted raids at the EEAS headquarters, multiple buildings at the College of Europe, and the homes of the suspects.

An investigative judge has 48 hours from the start of questioning to decide on further action. All three individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty by Belgian courts.

Mogherini's path from Rome to Brussels

Mogherini, 52, served as the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy from 2014 to 2019. Before that, she held a brief stint as Italy's foreign minister under Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

Her political career began in the Italian Communist Youth Federation in 1988. After the dissolution of the Italian Communist Party, she joined the center-left Democratic Party and was elected to the Italian parliament in 2008, focusing on foreign affairs.

At the EU level, Mogherini became a prominent figure in international diplomacy, representing the bloc in negotiations over the Iran nuclear deal. She oversaw the External Action Service, the EU's diplomatic arm, for five years.

In 2020, she was appointed rector of the College of Europe, a prestigious postgraduate institution in Bruges that has long served as a training ground for EU officials and diplomats. The appointment drew criticism from some former alumni who questioned whether she had the academic credentials or experience to run a complex educational institution. The college is largely funded by the European Commission.

Mogherini also serves as director of the European Union Diplomatic Academy, the program at the center of the current investigation.

EU officials react to unprecedented probe

The European Commission confirmed Tuesday that police had visited the External Action Service as part of an ongoing investigation into activities that took place before the current foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, took office.

"We can confirm that the police was today at the EEAS buildings, and this is part of the ongoing investigation of the activities that took place before in the previous mandate," Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said. "Since it's an ongoing investigation, we will not be able to say more."

The College of Europe said in a statement that it would "fully cooperate with the authorities in the interest of transparency and respect for the investigative process." The school said it "remains committed to the highest standards of integrity, fairness, and compliance — both in academic and administrative matters."

Neither Mogherini nor Sannino could be reached for comment.

An EU diplomat told the Guardian that the investigation showed the European Public Prosecutor's Office "is not afraid to go after big names."

"If the allegations are true, they should be severely punished to send a clear message that any type of corruption is not tolerable in the EU," the diplomat said.

Political fallout may extend to Commission

The detentions come exactly one year into Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's second term and threaten to become a major political liability.

Politico reported that the probe risks inflaming already strained relations between von der Leyen and Kallas, the current head of the External Action Service. Sannino left his secretary-general position at the diplomatic service earlier this year and moved to a prominent role in von der Leyen's Commission.

Manon Aubry, co-chair of The Left group in the European Parliament, called for renewed accountability measures. "The credibility of our institutions is at stake," she said.

Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea, who was behind a failed no-confidence vote against von der Leyen in July, told Politico he was considering trying to trigger another motion.

Critics of the EU seized on the investigation. Zoltan Kovacs, spokesperson for the Hungarian government, which has faced EU criticism over rule-of-law concerns, wrote on social media: "Funny how Brussels lectures everyone on 'rule of law' while its own institutions look more like a crime series than a functioning union."

Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told state media that EU officials "prefer to ignore their own problems, while constantly lecturing everyone else."

Cristiano Sebastiani, a staff representative for one of the EU's major trade unions, said the allegations, if proven, would have "a disastrous impact on the credibility of the institutions concerned, and more broadly on citizens' perception of all European institutions."

The investigation follows a series of corruption scandals that have plagued Brussels in recent years. In 2022, the "Qatargate" scandal involved allegations that the Gulf state sought to influence members of the European Parliament through bribes and gifts. Earlier this year, a separate probe examined Chinese tech giant Huawei's lobbying activities in Europe.

If the allegations against Mogherini and Sannino are substantiated, observers say the case could become the most significant scandal to engulf EU institutions since the mass resignation of the Jacques Santer Commission in 1999 over financial mismanagement.