Police operations carried out in coordination with EPPO led to 37 arrests in connection with alleged criminal fraud against the EU’s financial interests and the national economy. Searches were conducted across the country.

EPPO said the group, active ‘since at least 2018’, exploited procedural loopholes in the Single Application Forms used under the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Members are accused of submitting forged or misleading documentation to claim payments from the Greek Payment and Control Agency for Guidance and Guarantee Community Aids (OPEKEPE), fraudulently declaring land and pastures that did not belong to them or that failed to meet eligibility criteria, and inflating livestock numbers to inflate payments.

To conceal the origin of the proceeds, suspects are alleged to have issued false invoices, channelled funds through multiple bank accounts and mixed illicit receipts with legitimate income. Part of the money is said to have been spent on luxury goods, travel and vehicles.

EPPO said its preliminary probe identified 324 individuals as beneficiaries of the disputed payments, causing estimated damage of more than €19.6 million to the EU budget. Of those, 42 are considered to be directly involved and are treated as current members of the alleged organised crime group. ‘Most of them do not appear to have any real connection to agriculture,’ the statement said, ‘which suggests their participation served exclusively to facilitate the fraud.’

The investigation received operational support from multiple domestic police and economic crime units, including the Economic Crimes Directorate of the Organised Crime Directorate, the Economic Crimes Prosecution Department of the Organised Crime Sub-directorate of northern Greece, and Crete’s organised crime department. Measures to freeze assets linked to the suspects are being executed by the Greek authority for combating money-laundering.

EPPO reiterated that all those involved are presumed innocent until proven guilty by the competent Greek courts.

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