The former mayor of Varna and the former governor of the region were accused of trying to extort EUR 2.8 million in EU funds for the renovation of a non-existent fishing port, the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) said. The port was pretended to be several floating pontoons.
Two officials were also charged. A total of four people are accused of forging documents and submitting false information in order to illegally receive EU funds.
The project worth EUR 3.4 million was co-financed by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund in the amount of EUR 2.8 million (the rest was to come from the Bulgarian budget).
Defunct port
This concerns the renovation of the fishing port on the outskirts of Varna, located on the Black Sea. Local authorities applied for the money. The problem is that, according to the EPPO investigation, such a port did not exist when the application for EU funding was submitted.
In order to benefit from EU funds, intended solely for improving the infrastructure of existing fishing ports, “the beneficiary assembled several pontoons as floating jetties, the sole purpose of which was to register the facility as an existing port,” reads the EPPO press release.
The applicants were helped by two officials from the Maritime Administration Executive Agency who changed the classification of the plot – from a place where there was sand, stones and other types of buildings to a port. In this way, the defendants misled Ministry of Transportwhich issued a certificate confirming the operationality of the fishing port. Subsequently, the non-existent port was registered by the Executive Agency.
The Sofia branch of the European Public Prosecutor's Office led to the prosecution. EPPO, as the EU's law enforcement authority, is responsible for investigating, prosecuting and prosecuting crimes against the EU's financial interests.
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