By the end of December, the European Public Prosecutor's Office was conducting 267 active investigations in Bulgaria for alleged damages amounting to approximately 1.7 billion euros. This is stated in the institution's annual report for 2025, published today.
The total number of active investigations by the European Public Prosecutor's Office in the participating Member States is 3,602, with the estimated value of the damages exceeding 67.27 billion euros.
Of these, 45.01 billion euros relate to revenue fraud (VAT and customs duties), which account for over 67% of the total estimated value of the damages at the end of 2025. The share of investigations of a cross-border nature remains stable – 27%, writes BTA.
In Bulgaria, the largest number of investigations were initiated under regional and urban development programs (84 cases), agricultural and rural development programs (71 cases), as well as employment, social cohesion, inclusion and values programs (27 cases).
By the end of 2025, 18 cases of revenue fraud (VAT and customs duties) with an estimated value of 487.44 million euros were active in the country. During the year, the European Public Prosecutor's Office received 111 reports from Bulgarian institutions, 64 from private individuals, eight from European institutions and agencies, as well as three ex officio reports. In total, 21 of the investigations in Bulgaria are cross-border in nature.
The report also highlights a specific case in Bulgaria. On 13 January 2025, the European Public Prosecutor's Office in Sofia brought fraud charges against three suspects following an investigation into a project for the design and construction of signaling and telecommunications systems on the Plovdiv - Burgas railway section. The project is worth over 94.5 million euros (184,999,094.97 BGN) in European funding.
The contract was awarded to a consortium of four companies. Two managers of an Italian company and a manager of a Bulgarian company, part of the consortium, are accused of fraud in the award of public contracts. A charge has also been brought against a former director of the National Company “Railway Infrastructure“, whose name is not specified.
According to the investigation, the legal representatives of the consortium provided false information in order to secure European funding, including regarding experience with railway communication systems GSM-R and FRMCS. The report states that the consortium subsequently outsourced the implementation of part of the activities to an Austrian company, which had previously been excluded from the procedure. All persons concerned are presumed innocent until proven guilty by a competent court.
In 2025, the European Public Prosecutor's Office processed 6,966 crime reports, which is an increase of 6 percent compared to 2024. The growth is mainly due to reports from private individuals (4,629) and from national authorities (2,107, or 20 percent more than the previous year). Reports from EU institutions and agencies increased from 113 in 2024 to 143 in 2025.
Based on the available information, 2,030 investigations were opened in 2025 – nearly 35% more than in 2024, with estimated damages of €48.7 billion. 275 charges were brought during the year, up 34% year-on-year.
Judges issued asset freezing orders worth €1.13 billion, with assets actually frozen amounting to €288.93 million.