Several people have been arrested and homes searched as part of an investigation into alleged bribery and corruption at the European parliament relating to the Chinese technology giant Huawei, Belgian prosecutors have said.

The investigating judge in charge of the case has asked for seals to be fixed to the offices of two European parliament assistants alleged to be involved.

“The alleged bribery is said to have benefited Huawei,” Belgium’s federal prosecutor said in a statement on Thursday afternoon, after an earlier statement that did not mention the company.

The first statement said that several individuals had been arrested for questioning over their alleged involvement “in active corruption within the European parliament”, as well as forgery and use of forgeries. The prosecutor said the alleged offences were “committed by a criminal organisation” and had been practised regularly and discreetly from 2021 to the present.

Since the first Donald Trump administration, European countries have faced intense pressure from the US not to use Huawei equipment in their 5G networks on national security grounds.

A Huawei spokesperson said the company took the allegations seriously and would urgently communicate with the investigation to further understand the situation. “Huawei has a zero-tolerance policy towards corruption or other wrongdoing, and we are committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations at all times,” they said.

People involved in the alleged criminal “cash for influence” scheme are suspected to have been paid for taking political positions or to have received “excessive gifts” such as food, travel expenses and invitations to football matches. All this was done for “promoting purely private commercial interests in the context of political decisions”, the prosecutor said.

Investigators are also examining whether money laundering took place, as they suspect intermediaries may have received payments to disguise the trail.

The allegations were first reported by the Belgian media and the investigative outlet Follow the Money, which said that about 15 current and former MEPs were “on the radar” of investigators.

The authorities said “several people” had been arrested for questioning, including one male suspect in France under a European arrest warrant, but declined to give further details. More than 21 searches were carried out by more than 100 police officers across Belgium and in Portugal.

A European parliament spokesperson said: “We have received a request for cooperation from the Belgian authorities to assist the investigation, which the parliament will swiftly and fully honour.”

Transparency campaigners said the allegations were as serious as the Qatargate scandal that shook the European parliament three years ago, when a Greek vice-president of the parliament, Eva Kaili, and an Italian former MEP, Pier Antonio Panzeri, were among suspects charged by police with corruption and money laundering over activities said to benefit Qatar.

In January 2025, the Belgian former MEP Maria Arena said she had been charged with participating in a criminal organisation as part of the same investigation.

All deny any wrongdoing. The case has yet to come to trial.