The European Anti-Fraud Office (Olaf) has launched an investigation into far-right Belgian MEP Tom Vandendriessche (Vlaams Belang). The exact premises of the investigation remain unclear but the politician is known for glorifying Nazism and is suspected of misusing European funds and falling under Russian influence.
The investigation was launched two months ago and relates to "possible irregularities", "misconduct" and a "breach of obligations" according to a letter seen by publications Humo and Apache.
Vandendriessche has been accused of misusing European funds on multiple occasions and is suspected of having links with Russian forces. In addition, his strong affiliations with far-right and Nazi ideologies characterise his trajectory from student activist to political representative.
Several employees have reported that Vandendriessche asked them to work on files unrelated to his European mandate, therefore diverting funds and breaching parliamentary rules. He has spent almost €450,000 on Facebook and Instagram advertisements, which is well in excess of the annual €60,000 cap outlined by Belgian law. The politician says he used his own money rather than official funds to cover this sum and has even joked that the money came from Russian and Chinese backers.
Vandendriessche is one of three Vlaams Belang politicians to be interviewed by the Czech outlet 'Voice of Europe', which was labelled a Russian propaganda network by the EU last month. MEPs were reportedly approached and paid to promote Kremlin-sponsored content as a way to advance pro-Russian narratives within the European Parliament. Key suspects are believed to be members of the European far-right.
'White power'
Heavy flirtation with Nazism permeates the entirety of Vandendriessche's political career. In February, Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld (Renew) called for an investigation into the far-right politician for his repeated use of Nazi terms such as omvolking to refer to mass migration, alluding to the widely discredited Great Replacement theory.
Humo and Apache have revealed that these ideologies stretch back to Vandendriessche's student years, when he was a member of various nationalist student organisations. He was leader of both the National Young Student Association (NJSV) and KVHV Ghent and reportedly put both organisations on a markedly more extremist course. During his tenure at the latter he invited a former Ku Klux Klan leader to give a lecture on campus.
He was also a member of the Flemish Nationalist Student Association (NSV) but was expelled for extremism, anti-Semitism and a fascination with Nazism. "We were no wimps at the NSV, but there were limits," ex-Vlaams Belang member Michael de Bronett told Humo. "In my entire career, I have shown three people the door because of extremist views. Tom Vandendriessche was one of them. He was an unadulterated Hitler fanatic."
Following this removal, Vandendriessche went on to found the Flemish Student Union (VSB), where he oversaw the creation of white supremacist posters featuring racist slogans and Nazi logos.
Credit: Humo
The target symbol at the centre denotes the 'White Power' symbol of the American Nazi Party. The crest in the bottom left combines the Flemish lion with the 'SS Totenkopf' skull, taken from SS caps and the uniforms of the Flemish SS. According to De Bronett, Vandendriessche and other VSB members often donned caps decorated with the Totenkopf.
In July 2023, Vandendriessche published a photograph of himself making the 'White Power' symbol with his hands (three fingers form a 'W' and two form a 'P') in the European Parliament. Knack subsequently pointed this out, prompting the politician to dismiss the allegation as "complete nonsense [...] I admit that it was also a politically incorrect nod that you and others apparently fell for. But I repeat: I have nothing to do with the white power movement."
When contacted for comment by The Brussels Times on this occasion, Vandendriessche said he looked forward to the Olaf investigation disproving all allegations against him. "I am 100% sure no funds have been misused," he stated.
