Police Raid on European Parliament Building as Investigations into Russian Influence Continue

According to the prosecutors in Belgium and France, police officers conducted searches of the offices and residence of a European Parliament employee as part of ongoing investigations into the possibility of bribery by members of the European Parliament in exchange for promoting Russian propaganda. The Belgian Federal Prosecutor's Office stated on Wednesday, May 30, that the residence of this employee in Brussels and simultaneously their offices in Strasbourg, France, the administrative headquarters of the European Parliament, were searched. This operation was carried out in collaboration with the French and Belgian prosecutors and Eurojust, the EU's judicial cooperation agency. These searches took place about ten days before the European Parliament elections scheduled for June 6-9. The Belgian Prime Minister announced about a month ago that investigations into Russian influence in the European Parliament had begun, and the country's security agencies confirmed that a network aimed at undermining EU support for Ukraine was operating. The Belgian Prosecutor's Office stated: 'These searches are part of a case related to influence, passive financial corruption, and organized crime, and are connected to signs of Russian influence in which members of the European Parliament are encouraged to promote Russian propaganda through the Europe’s Voice website in exchange for money.' The Belgian Prosecutor's Office added that investigations indicate this employee played a 'very significant role' in this matter. Several news websites identified the suspect as Guillaume Pradoura, stating that he is an employee in the office of Marcel de Graaff, a representative of the far-right Dutch party known as 'Democracy Forum.' An informed source who wished to remain anonymous confirmed the reports regarding the name and workplace of the suspect. Marcel de Graaff wrote on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that the responsible authorities had not contacted him or Mr. Pradoura. He added in his message: 'All these actions are completely surprising to me. Moreover, I am in no way involved in any operations that are referred to as the dissemination of false information by Russia. I have my political beliefs and defend them. It is my duty as a member of the European Parliament.' The main candidate of the far-right party in Germany withdrew from the European Parliament elections. Guillaume Pradoura previously worked in the office of Maximilian Kra, the main candidate of the far-right 'Alternative for Germany' party. Mr. Kra was banned from participating in the European Parliament election campaign by his party after controversial remarks about the SS, the paramilitary organization of the Nazi party in Germany. About a month ago, one of Mr. Kra's office employees in the European Parliament was arrested on charges of espionage for China, and this series of events has intensified suspicions against this senior figure in the 'Alternative for Germany' party. Maximilian Kra wrote on Wednesday in a message on the social media platform 'X' that none of his offices in the European Parliament were searched on Wednesday, and the suspect in this matter has long been working in the office of another representative. Last month, the European Union banned the broadcasting of programs from the 'Europe’s Voice' website and three other Russian media outlets. The Union explained its decision by stating that all these media were under Kremlin control and 'targeted European political parties, especially during election periods.' Since the beginning of Russia's military invasion of Ukraine, the European Union has banned the activities of several Russian media outlets, including 'RT' and 'Sputnik,' in 27 member countries of the Union. The Belgian Prime Minister stated last month, simultaneously with the announcement of the start of investigations by the country's prosecutors, that 'investigations by our security agencies indicate that the goals of Russian actions are to help elect more Moscow-friendly candidates in the European Parliament and to strengthen pro-Moscow narratives in this institution.' He added: 'Their goal is quite clear. Undermining EU support for Ukraine to benefit Russia on the battlefields is the main objective of the actions that have been revealed in recent weeks.'