Belgian prosecutors drop investigation into Didier Reynders

Commission nominee had always denied wrongdoing.

Belgian prosecutors have dropped an investigation into allegations of corruption and money-laundering against Didier Reynders, the country’s foreign minister and nominee for the next European Commission.

The investigation was triggered by a statement from a former Belgian intelligence officer, who accused Reynders and a longtime associate of bribery related to the construction of the Belgian embassy building in Kinshasa and the lease of a federal police HQ, among other claims. Reynders always denied wrongdoing.

“The charges were dismissed because there was no criminal offence,” a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s service said Friday evening, without giving further explanation.

Reynders, nominated to be the next justice commissioner, will appear before members of the European Parliament for a confirmation hearing on Wednesday.