At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, ten searches were conducted in Sofia on Wednesday as part of an investigation into suspected subsidy fraud related to the restoration of a church funded by the EU.
During the searches, conducted in Burgas, Petrich, Rila and Sofia, documents and evidence were seized.
The facts date back to 2017, when a public procurement procedure was conducted for a project to restore wall paintings and architectural details of a church dating back to the 12th century, financed by the EU’s INTERREG IPA Cross Border Cooperation Programme. The church is considered a historical and cultural monument in Bulgaria, EPPO said.
According to the investigation, the company that won the bid did not have the expertise required in the public procedure, and sub-contracted the works to another company. However, the subcontractor did not have the necessary technical skills, either, and subcontracted a third company, which had the required expertise and executed the restoration.
The amount of the support for the restoration was €198 000. Based on the evidence, the first contractor received the total amount, and only paid €70 000 to the subcontractors – thus keeping €128 000 without performing any activities under the project, to the detriment of the EU’s financial interests, the EPPO statment reads.
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