New phase in investigation into alleged defrauding of EU funds for guest houses in Bulgaria
Bulgaria’s Prosecutor-General Ivan Geshev has ordered the prosecutor’s offices in five cities to assume special oversight of 23 pre-trial proceedings in connection with alleged crimes involving fraudulent applications for European Union funds for guest houses, the Prosecutor’s Office said on January 7.
The directive was handed to the prosecutor’s offices in Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Bourgas and Veliko Turnovo.
Geshev ordered that each office designate a specific supervising prosecutor to provide “enhanced methodological and organisational assistance” to prosecutors dealing with the cases at first instance.
The Prosecutor’s Office began an investigation into alleged fraud involving EU funds for guest houses in April 2019.
A total of 746 EU-funded guest house projects in Bulgaria have been inspected. Twenty-three pre-trial proceedings have resulted, while in other cases, inspections are continuing.
The statement said that Geshev would continue to monitor announcements by the prosecutor’s offices and would order special supervision of any new pre-trial proceedings in connection with fraud involving EU funding for guest houses.
