At the request of the Bulgarian branch of the European Prosecutor's Office in Sofia, searches are being carried out in six companies and four private properties in two Bulgarian regions. This is reported on the website of the European Prosecutor's Office.
The purpose of the searches is to gather evidence on suspicion of embezzlement, misuse of European funds and money laundering related to the construction of the “Railway” tunnel. - the longest road tunnel in Bulgaria, which was recently opened for traffic.
The construction is managed by the “Road Infrastructure” Agency. It concluded a contract with a consortium of three companies to implement the project. It is co-financed by the European Cohesion Fund under OP "Transport and Transport Infrastructure". (2014-2020). The contractor received approximately BGN 185 million (about EUR 95.6 million). 85% of the funds are from European funds.
Following a signal received by the National Security Agency, the Bulgarian branch of the European Public Prosecutor's Office has started an investigation. It is clear from it that one of the companies, part of the consortium, is suspected of several crimes, including embezzlement, misuse of European funds and money laundering. The company, the subject of the investigation, made in a very short time several fictitious money transfers worth over BGN 11 million (€5.6 million) to a chain of "hollow" companies. This has resulted in large sums of cash being withdrawn from individuals who have a criminal record. The names of these companies and individuals also appear in another ongoing investigation by the Bulgarian branch of the European Public Prosecutor's Office concerning infrastructure projects in the railway sector.
The investigation is ongoing to determine the nature and severity of the alleged criminal acts. Monday's raids were carried out by the General Directorate of the National Police. (GDNP) and State Agency "National Security" (DANCE).