site.btaEPPO Reports First Conviction for EUR 400,000 Attempted Fraud in Bulgaria

Attempted fraud relating to EU funds and almost worth EUR 400,000 of damages to the common budget was prevented, followed by the first conviction in an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Bulgaria, EPPO said on Thursday. 

The manager of a wine company in the southern city of Plovdiv has been convicted of attempted fraud relating to EU funds aimed at promoting the export of wine outside of the European Union. The manager submitted forged documents during the funding application and was sentenced to one year of imprisonment and a fine.

In March 2020, the wine company applied for EUR 390,452 in EU subsidies.

In order to meet the requirements for receiving financial aid, each prospective beneficiary had to present three comparable, independent offers to the State Fund Agriculture (SFA). During their checks, the SFA found that some of the documents featured forged signatures, as well as ither irregularities.

The SFA consequently referred the case to the prosecution and Sofia City Prosecutor's Office opened pre-trial proceedings. Later, the EPPO took over the case.

The accused pleaded guilty and concluded an agreement with the EPPO that was approved by the Specialised Criminal Court. He was sentenced to one year of imprisonment with suspended serving of three years, and a fine of BGN 2,000.

The BTA correspondent in Brussels Nikolay Jeliazkov contributed to this story