Didier Reynders placed under suspicion of money laundering

Former Belgian minister and European Commissioner Didier Reynders has been questioned and placed under suspicion of money laundering. This was reported on Tuesday by De Standaard, Le Soir, Le Vif and investigative platform Follow The Money, citing judicial sources.

Reynders was interrogated by investigators on 16 October. The investigating judge then placed him under suspicion of money laundering. His wife, honorary magistrate Bernadette Prignon, was heard but not charged. The Brussels public prosecutor’s office declined to confirm the information, saying it “reserves its comments for justice.”

Former EU Commissioner Didier Reynders under investigation for money laundering

A judicial investigation has been launched into possible money laundering by Didier Reynders, the former Belgian minister and EU Commissioner for...

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Lottery tickets

The investigation came to light in December last year. The National Lottery is said to have noticed suspicious sales of e-tickets at a petrol station in Uccle as early as 2021. An internal investigation allegedly traced the irregularities to player accounts belonging to Reynders and his wife. The couple are suspected of laundering around 200,000 euros through National Lottery products over a five-year period.

In addition, between 2008 and 2018, Reynders allegedly deposited some 700,000 euros in small cash amounts into an ING account. After the bank questioned him about the transactions, he reportedly began buying large quantities of scratch cards with cash instead.

^{© BELGA PHOTO HATIM KAGHAT}

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