News

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), in cooperation with Croatia’s National Police Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime (Policijski nacionalni Ured za suzbijanje korupcije i organiziranog kriminaliteta), arrested five individuals in Croatia today, 4 April 2023, on suspicion of abuse of office and authority, committed to the detriment of the EU’s Cohesion Fund.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Iași (Romania) is carrying out eight searches today, 4 April 2023, including at the headquarters of the Siret Customs Office and the residences of customs officials, in an investigation into a customs fraud scheme orchestrated to evade the payment of taxes and custom duties on imported tobacco.

On Friday, 31 March 2023, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in České Budějovice (Czechia) referred a criminal case to the Pardubice branch seat of the Hradec Králové Regional Court, where two individuals were indicted for fraudulently obtaining up to €190 000 in EU funds, for the provision of childcare services.

Last week (28 March 2023), a German court (Landgericht Landshut) convicted two out of ten suspects of organising a VAT carousel fraud scheme involving luxury cars. This follows an earlier conviction of five of the ten suspects in 2022.

In an investigation carried out by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Palermo, Sicily (Italy), over €239 000 in movable assets and real estate has been seized from a company suspected of agricultural funding fraud. These seizures were made by the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Agri-food of Messina (Reparto Carabinieri per la Tutela Agroalimentare di Messina).

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is carrying out searches today, 31 March 2023, in Sofia (Bulgaria), in a probe into possible corruption and misuse of EU funds to restore the city’s historic centre, including its iconic yellow paved streets.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) today, 28 March 2023, carried out ten searches in several locations in Belgium, including at Liège Airport, and arrested four suspects, during an operation against a customs fraud ring believed to have caused damages of up to €310 million in evaded tax.

In an investigation led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Bologna, a pre-trial house arrest warrant and a freezing order of over €1 million were issued by the Italian judge for the investigation working at the Tribunal of Macerata, at the request of the EPPO. Both measures affect an Italian company and its legal representative, and were executed yesterday (23 March 2023) by the Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza) based in Camerino (Marche region, Italy).

In an investigation into a complex VAT fraud on imported fuels, led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bologna (Italy), the Parma Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza) executed today, 23 March 2023, a freezing order of assets of up to €149 million.