EPPO raids far-right offices in four EU countries over €4.33m fund misuse
Raids in France, Spain, Italy, and Belgium target communication providers that worked with the Identity and Democracy group, including France's National Rally.
The raids target communication firms
On June 30, 2026, the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) conducted coordinated searches in France, Spain, Italy and Belgium. The raids focused on the offices and personal homes of communication providers that worked with the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, according to Jordan Bardella, the president of France's National Rally (RN), in a post on X.
The ID group and the alleged misuse
The ID group was a far-right political faction in the European Parliament active from 2019 to 2024, which included the RN, Belgium's Vlaams Belang, Italy's Lega, the Dutch PVV, and Germany's Alternative für Deutschland. After 2024, it largely merged into the Patriots for Europe group. In July 2025, the EPPO opened an investigation after a report by the Parliament's financial affairs directorate identified €4.33 million in "unduly spent" funds. The money is suspected to have been paid to organizations with ties to the group's member parties, including communication agencies.
Political reaction
Bardella denied wrongdoing, saying:
Philippe Ballard, RN deputy and spokesperson, echoed that line on Franceinfo, stating:Since early this morning, searches are underway at the headquarters and personal homes of communication providers who have worked with us. As always, judicial procedures follow the electoral calendar. We have nothing to reproach ourselves for, and we will prove it.
We will let justice take its course. But we are serene. We will show that we are, once again, completely innocent.
A separate legal front for Bardella?
The same day, Le Canard enchaîné reported that a judicial investigation may soon be opened against Bardella personally, following a complaint by the anti-corruption association Anticor. The complaint concerns a four-and-a-half-month period in 2015 when Bardella worked as a parliamentary assistant to then-MEP Jean-François Jalkh. Anticor is also seeking an investigation into alleged forgery of documents that were produced to attest to Bardella's work. This separate case, if it proceeds, would add a new legal challenge for the RN leader.
What the EPPO says
The EPPO, created in 2021, is an independent EU body that prosecutes financial crimes. Its probe into the ID group is one of several recent investigations targeting European parliamentary groups over misuse of funds.The European Public Prosecutor's Office is currently carrying out investigative measures in France and other European countries as part of an ongoing investigation into the use of EU funds by a former political group in the European Parliament between 2019 and 2024.
- EPPO opens investigation into ID group over alleged misuse of EU funds
- Raids conducted in France, Spain, Italy, and Belgium targeting communication providers
