The European Prosecutor's Office is carrying out 'evidence-gathering activities' related to an investigation opened by the European Commission (EC) into the sale of 23 community buildings to Belgium in 2024, sources from the European Executive and the Prosecutor's Office confirmed to EFE on Thursday. 'The European Prosecutor's Office can confirm that it is carrying out evidence-gathering activities in an ongoing investigation,' Paula Telo Alves, a spokeswoman for the European Prosecutor's Office, told EFE. In turn, a spokesman for the Community Executive responded to EFE that they are 'aware of an ongoing investigation carried out by the European Prosecutor's Office concerning the sale of 23 Commission buildings to the Belgian state in 2024'. According to the European spokesman, 'the sale of the buildings was carried out in accordance with the established procedures and protocols'. 'We are confident that the process was carried out in a compliant manner,' he said, adding that the Commission is 'committed to transparency and accountability and will cooperate fully' with the authorities 'to ensure a thorough and independent investigation into this matter'. According to the Financial Times, Belgian police carried out searches on Thursday in several Commission premises in Brussels. The sales being investigated took place during the term of office of the previous Commissioner for Budget, Austrian Johannes Hahn. Both the Prosecutor's Office and the European Commission declined to give further details about the investigation.
