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(Luxembourg, 21 November 2023) – On 12 October, following an investigation led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Vilnius (Lithuania), the District Court of Vilnius convicted six individuals and one company of document forgery, fraudulent account management and high value fraud.
One of the defendants, a business owner, had applied on behalf of his company for several EU-funded projects related to the promotion of small and medium-sized enterprises. Within the context of these projects, he and his business partners received EU funding to purchase machines and equipment for the production of Covid-19 protective filters and equipment.
The investigation revealed that the business owner had an agreement with his suppliers, who artificially inflated the costs of the equipment by falsifying documents, such as invoices. The business owner added these documents to the companies’ accounting records, which led to the appearance of increased expenses in the company’s balance sheet – thereby increasing the amount of funding received, and masking the fraudulent financial gain. The court found that in total, six persons and one company were involved in these fraudulent activities.
Overall, the business owner was found to have caused an actual damage of €580 000 to the EU budget.
Details of convictions and repayment of damage
The six individuals received suspended custodial sentences, of between nine months and one year. The individuals and convicted company also have to pay fines ranging from €19 000 to €150 000.
The €580 000 worth of damage to the EU budget caused by the defendants’ criminal activities was repaid to Lithuania’s Ministry of Economy and Innovation during the pre-trial investigation. As the defendants pleaded guilty and repaid the damage before the verdict became final, their sentences were reduced by one-third.
The EPPO-led investigation was carried out by the Financial Crime Investigation Service of the Lithuanian Ministry of the Interior.
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.