European Public Prosecutor’s Office looking into texts between Ursula von der Leyen and boss of Pfizer.

European Public Prosecutor’s Office looking into texts between Ursula von der Leyen and boss of Pfizer.

Top European prosecutors are investigating allegations of criminal wrongdoing in connection with vaccine negotiations between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the CEO of Pfizer, according to a spokesperson from the Liège prosecutor’s office.

Investigators from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) have in recent months taken over from Belgian prosecutors investigating von der Leyen over “interference in public functions, destruction of SMS, corruption and conflict of interest,” according to legal documents seen by POLITICO and a spokesperson from the Liège prosecutor’s office. While EPPO’s prosecutors are investigating alleged criminal offenses, no one has yet been charged in connection with the case.

The probe was originally opened by Belgian judicial authorities in the city of Liège in early 2023 after a criminal complaint lodged by local lobbyist Frédéric Baldan. He was later joined by the Hungarian and Polish governments — although the latter is in the process of withdrawing its complaint after the election win by a pro-EU government led by Donald Tusk, a Polish government spokesperson told POLITICO.

  • AutoTL;DRBEnglish
    1•3 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    The probe was originally opened by Belgian judicial authorities in the city of Liège in early 2023 after a criminal complaint lodged by local lobbyist Frédéric Baldan.

    Baldan’s complaint centered around an alleged exchange of text messages between von der Leyen and Pfizer boss Albert Bourla in the run-up to the EU’s biggest vaccine deal at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, in an affair dubbed “Pfizergate.”

    The New York Times, which first revealed that the exchange had taken place as the two leaders hashed out the terms of the deal, has launched a parallel lawsuit against the Commission after it refused to disclose the content of the messages following an access to documents request.

    EPPO leads pan-European investigations into financial crimes, and in theory could seize phones and other relevant material from Commission offices or in other countries in Europe such as von der Leyen’s native Germany.

    Last year, Baldan, a 36-old Belgian lobbyist with ties to vaccine-skeptic group Bon Sens, lodged a criminal complaint in Belgium in connection to von der Leyen’s role in the vaccine negotiations with Pfizer over what he alleges were acts of “interference in public functions, destruction of SMS, corruption and conflict of interest,” according to legal information provided by his lawyer.

    Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán, a steadfast opponent of von der Leyen, also filed a complaint in connection to the Commission president’s role in vaccine negotiations with Pfizer, according to two insiders with knowledge of the case, speaking on condition of anonymity because of its sensitivity.

    The original article contains 829 words, the summary contains 254 words. Saved 69%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!