Former E.U. Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini resigned from her position as head of the College of Europe on Thursday hours after being detained and accused of corruption in an ongoing investigation.
Belgian police detained Mogherini alongside two others earlier this week. All three stand accused of committing fraud by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).
EPPO detailed that the probe aims to investigate suspected fraud allegations related to an EU-funded training program for junior diplomats — specifically, on a tender awarded by the European External Action Service to the College of Europe between 2021-2022. The College of Europe is an institution closely associated and partly funded by the European Union.
“There are strong suspicions that, during the tendering process for the programme, article 169 of the Financial Regulation related to fair competition was breached, and that confidential information related to the ongoing procurement was shared with one of the candidates participating in the tender,” EPPO said in a statement.
Mogherini was reportedly held for questioning for 10 hours before being released and not deemed a flight risk. As part of the probe, officials searched the three accused individuals’ respective homes and also carried out searches at the EU’s Foreign Service headquarters in Brussels, the European External Action Service, and at the College of Europe in Bruges.
Hours later, Mogherini publicly presented her resignation as head of the College of Europe and as Director of the European Union Diplomatic Academy through a brief statement issued by the College. She was in charge of the college since 2020.
“I am proud of what we have achieved together and I am deeply grateful for the trust, esteem, and support that students, faculty, staff, and Alumni of the College and the Academy have shown and are showing to me,” she wrote.
Prior to serving as head of the College of Europe, Mogherini served as the E.U.’s Foreign Policy Chief from 2014 to 2019 before briefly serving as Italy’s Foreign Minister.
The Guardian reported on Thursday that, in a letter reviewed by the outlet, E.U. Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas described the allegations as “deeply shocking but should in no way tarnish the good work that the vast majority of you are doing every dya.”
The official reportedly asserted in the missive that integrity and accountability “will only improve under my watch.” She is presently on the first of his five year tenure at the position. According to Kallas, the current process showed “safeguards are in place and working.”
Entrance of the College of Europe graduate school Campus in Brugge on December 2, 2025. The E.U.’s former foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini was taken into custody as police staged raids probing a suspected fraud scheme and the training of European diplomats. (KURT DESPLENTER / Belga / AFP via Getty)
The Guardian said that one of the other accused is understood to be senior commission official Stefano Saninno, who served as Secretary General of the European External Action Service from 2021 and 2024.
EPPO detailed that the ongoing probe was first reported to the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF). The investigation, the Prosecutor’s Office said, could constitute “procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest and violation of professional secrecy.”
“All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty by the competent Belgian courts of law,” EPPO noted.
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