The National Lottery and the anti-money laundering unit CFI independently filed two reports to the Public Prosecutor over money laundering suspicions relating to Didier Reynders.
Reynders was subject to two separate reports of money laundering suspicions from different bodies, De Standaard reported on Monday. A second reports was made by Belgium's anti-money laundering authority. It adds to the allegations from the state-franchised lottery.
The Financial Information Processing Unit (CFI) received a report from a bank in late 2023 about suspicious behaviour around Reynders' accounts. Banks are one of the entities obligated to report suspicious transactions alongside accountants, notaries, and gambling companies, according to De Standaard.
The dossier forwarded by the CFI to the prosecutor is more extensive than that of the Lottery. The CFI reviewed transactions over the past ten years and reportedly found nearly €800,000 euros in suspicious funds in Reynders’ accounts.
This investigation adds itself to the National Lottery case. The Belgian was the first to raise suspicions, noticing potential fraud in 2021 due to an unusually high number of e-tickets being purchased over a prolonged period at one of their sales points.
Over a period of approximately five years, the Reynders couple allegedly laundered €200,000 through the National Lottery. In March 2022, the National Lottery reported ‘indications of money laundering’ by Reynders and his spouse to the federal prosecutor.
As the events took place in Brussels, the investigation was handed over to the Brussels Prosecutor’s Office, and due to Reynders’ former roles as European Commissioner and minister, the case was further referred to the Attorney General’s office.