EU prosecutors search Patriots for Europe offices in Brussels and Strasbourg
The probe concerns more than €4 million in EU funds allegedly misused by the former Identity and Democracy group. The Patriots deny any link to the case.
Archive image · Photo: Diliff / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and resized)
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) on Wednesday searched offices of the far-right Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament. According to Euronews, premises in Brussels and Strasbourg, the Parliament’s two main seats, were affected. The searches are part of an investigation, under way since July 2025, into the alleged misuse of EU funds by the former Identity and Democracy (ID) group between 2019 and 2024. More than €4 million is at stake.
ID included France’s National Rally, Italy’s Lega and Germany’s AfD, among others. The group dissolved after the 2024 European elections, and many of its parties went on to form the Patriots, which also include Hungary’s Fidesz and Spain’s Vox. In September 2025, Parliament’s Budgetary Control Committee took the view that the Patriots should repay the money once the investigation is closed.
The Patriots said they have no “legal continuity” with ID and are not involved in the investigation. Jean-Paul Garraud, head of the National Rally delegation, wrote on X that the searches targeted “the offices of former ID staff members.” Parliament said it cooperates with the relevant authorities, while the EPPO gave no further details.