The key facts
- EPPO carried out searches in European Parliament offices in Brussels and Strasbourg on Wednesday, 21 October 2026
- The investigation concerns the alleged misuse of EU funds by the ID group in 2019–2024; auditors estimated the amount at a minimum of €4.3 million
- PfE denies legal succession from ID; the CONT committee previously stated that PfE should return the funds after the case is closed
Searches at two European Parliament seats
The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) on Wednesday, 21 October 2026, carried out searches in administrative offices in the European Parliament buildings in Brussels and Strasbourg. EPPO said the searches took place at premises in France and Belgium as part of an investigation into the use of EU funds by a former parliamentary group, but did not name it and refused to publish details so as not to harm the investigation. The Parliament confirmed to Euronews that the searches are linked to the case of the former Identity and Democracy (ID) group and stated that it 'is cooperating with the relevant authorities', without commenting on details.
Connection to the ID group case
The investigation has been ongoing since July last year into the alleged misuse of EU funds by the ID group in 2019–2024. According to a European Parliament audit report, ID members improperly spent at least €4.3 million (about $4.8 million); according to the report, the money went to companies close to the group and to associations supporting opponents of abortion. The ID group, which united the National Rally (France), Alternative for Germany (AfD), the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) and the Italian League, broke up after the 2024 European Parliament elections amid internal conflict, including over the AfD lead candidate Maximilian Krah.
Patriots for Europe's position
The Patriots for Europe (PfE) group, which includes Marine Le Pen's National Rally, Matteo Salvini's League and Viktor Orbán's Hungarian Fidesz, confirmed the searches and said they were probably linked to a complaint about ID, which was dissolved in 2024. PfE stressed that it 'has no legal succession' from ID and 'is not involved in the ongoing investigation'. National Rally MEP Jean-Paul Garraud wrote on X that the searches affected 'the offices of staff of the former ID group'. According to Euronews, PfE may be required to return more than €4 million allegedly spent by its predecessor. An opinion approved by the Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) in September last year stated that PfE should return the funds misused by ID after the investigation is closed. Under Parliament's rules, a group is considered a 'successor' to a dissolved one if a number of conditions are met: the transfer of a decisive share of MEPs, the transfer of premises, IT systems, accounts or assets, as well as presenting the new structure as a direct heir or a rebranding that looks like a way to shed obligations.
Context
PfE is the third-largest group in the European Parliament with 85 seats out of 719, after the European People's Party (184) and the Socialists and Democrats (135). AfD was not invited to PfE and created the smaller Europe of Sovereign Nations group (27 seats, 15 of them AfD). Deutsche Welle notes that the case resembles, but is not connected to, the conviction of National Rally leader Marine Le Pen, a former MEP; an appeals court removed obstacles to her presidential campaign.
