Scientology up on criminal charges in Belgium

Oooh, fight your way out of this one, defraudulators.

BRUSSELS, Belgium — A Belgian prosecutor on Tuesday recommended that the U.S.-based Church of Scientology stand trial for fraud and extortion, following a 10-year investigation that concluded the group should be labeled a criminal organization.

Scientology said it would fight the criminal charges recommended by investigating prosecutor Jean-Claude Van Espen, who said that up to 12 unidentified people should face charges.

Van Espen’s probe also concluded that Scientology’s Brussels-based Europe office and its Belgian missions conducted unlawful practices in medicine, violated privacy laws and used illegal business contracts, said Lieve Pellens, a spokeswoman at the Federal Prosecutors Office.

“They also face charges of being … a criminal organization,” Pellens said in a telephone interview.

An administrative court will decide whether to press charges against the Scientologists.

Of course, the scientologists are screaming bias.

In a statement, Scientology’s Europe office accused the prosecutor of hounding the organization and said it would contest the charges.

“For the last 10 years, the prosecutor has been using the media, trying to damage the reputation of the Church of Scientology and not being able to put a case in court,” Scientology said. “As a consequence, this created a climate of intolerance and discrimination” in Belgium.

It added that the prosecutor’s recommendations suggested Scientology was guilty even before a court could hear the charges, making it “difficult for the Church of Scientology to recover and properly defend (itself) before the court.”

That didn’t surprise me. But this did:

Belgium, Germany and other European countries have been criticized by the State Department for labeling Scientology as a cult or sect and enacting laws to restrict its operations.

There is something wrong with the American State Department. Anti-Israel and pro-scientology? You’ve got to be kidding me.

And oh, yeah—this post will bring the usual scientology stooge emails to my inbox. They think I can’t tell that these random strangers defending the Cult of Ron are cultists themselves.