Published on
(Luxembourg, 18 July 2024) – The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Timișoara (Romania) has accused five individuals of aggravated subsidy fraud, forgery of private documents and intellectual forgery, with an estimated damage of €667 000.
At issue is a project to establish a pig-breeding farm in the town of Corabia, Olt County, financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). According to the investigation, the beneficiary of the funds, with the support of the equipment supplier and the project consultant, submitted false documents for goods that were bought at a lower price and were of another nature or quantity than those requested from the EAFRD, thus unduly obtaining funds from the EU budget of €667 000.
It is also understood that two employees of Romania’s Agency for Financing Rural Investments (AFIR), in the exercise of their duties, falsely mentioned that they had conducted accurate on-the-spot checks of the equipment that had been requested by the beneficiary.
As a result of the EPPO’s proactive measures, an additional amount of approximately €500 000 was prevented from being unduly obtained from the EU budget.
The investigation counted on the support of Romania’s Anti-Corruption General Directorate (Direcția Generală Anticorupție – Serviciile Județene Anticorupție Timiș și Mehedinți), Timiș County Police Inspectorate – Lugoj Municipal Police (Inspectoratul de Poliție Județean Timiș – Poliția Municipiului Lugoj-Secţia 5 Poliţie Belinţ) and Special Operations Brigade Timișoara (Direcția de Operațiuni Speciale – Brigada de Operațiuni Speciale Timișoara).
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.