Published on
(Luxembourg, 30 July 2024) – The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Bucharest (Romania) has brought charges against four suspects, believed to be part of a criminal ring with ties to Italian mafia groups, for a €4.3 million subsidy fraud involving EU and national funds.
It is alleged that the defendants formed a criminal group with other suspects to provide false letters of guarantee to awardees of projects financed by EU funds, which claimed to insure the projects against potential damages. In exchange for issuing the letters, the suspects are understood to have collected large sums of money.
They are believed to have carried out this fraudulent scheme in the name of companies registered in Czechia and Latvia, which did not have the right to issue letters of guarantee, nor the financial resources to cover the insured damages.
It is understood that the use of these documents resulted in an illicit gain of approximately €4.3 million, most of which from the European Regional Development Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Regional Operational Programme.
These indictments are the result of several investigations into criminal schemes using the same modus operandi, following house searches in Romania and France in May 2023. Earlier, in 2023, other suspects were charged and are currently awaiting trial. Previously, €450 000 euros in assets were seized.
If found guilty, the defendants face between four and 15 years of imprisonment.
Based on the principle of loyal cooperation, the EPPO has alerted the Romanian Ministry of Investment and European projects about the existence of possible vulnerabilities in the management of European funds, which result in a significantly reduced level of protection of the financial interests of the EU in Romania. According to the typologies identified in several cases, the elements that generated a high risk of fraud in contracts with European funding consisted in the use of letters of guarantee issued by fictitious entities, or that did not have the right to issue such documents. Consequently, a series of public procedures were won on the basis of such false documents, and several investigations were opened by the EPPO.
All persons concerned are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in the competent Romanian courts of law.
The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.