site.btaEPPO Proposes Administrative Penalty for Farmer Suspected of Agricultural Subsidy Fraud

The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) in Sofia has proposed to the Sofia Regional Court an administrative penalty for a farmer suspected of agricultural subsidy fraud and document forgery. The suspect owns a sheep farm in the municipality of Varshets (Montana Region) and had successfully applied for funds to modernize his farm to the amount of BGN 134,770 (around EUR 69,000), 85% of which was financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and 15% by the national budget, the press release said.

In order to obtain these funds, the suspect needed to submit a number of documents, including one to prove that he had no existing tax obligations. An investigation carried out by the State Fund Agriculture showed that the farmer did have tax obligations and submitted a false document when applying for the funds. The requested funds were not released and the damage was prevented.

EPPO said that if convicted, the suspect can receive a fine up to BGN 5,000 (around EUR 2,500).