Greece probe shows extent of EU farm fraud

The Greek authorities estimate around 23 million euros ($26.9 million) of European Union farm subsidies were fraudulently claimed during a scandal that is gripping the nation, a government minister said on Tuesday.

In a televised statement, Greece's Minister of Citizen Protection Michalis Chrysochoidis revealed the first results of a police investigation into alleged organized fraud involving EU agricultural funds and the government agency tasked with supervising and paying the subsidies.

The findings come after police raided the now closed Athens offices of OPEKEPE, the Greek Payment Authority for the Common Agricultural Policy Aid Schemes, seizing farmers' tax records.

Investigators identified 1,036 cases of illegal EU agricultural subsidies totaling 22.7 million euros for the period 2019 to 2024, after investigating 6,354 tax identification numbers.

The fraud involved false declarations about farmland and livestock herds, the minister said. Fictitious "livestock farmers" cropped up across the country, with some even claiming to own farmland on the island of Mykonos, despite minimal agricultural activity there.

An independent investigation by Greek media outlet Inside Story found that several supposed farmers had collected subsidies for land that in fact was located in North Macedonia, and without owning any animals.

"It cannot and must not be tolerated that some people are embezzling valuable public resources, whether national or European. These resources are intended to support Greek agricultural production, not the illegal and unjustified enrichment of some," Chrysochoidis said.

The case, which is also being probed by the European Public Prosecutor's Office, revealed systemic misuse of funds at OPEKEPE, which the Greek government said distributed more than 3 billion euros yearly to 680,000 farmers.

While the probe is mainly focused on the period since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis took office in July 2019, officials say the fraud likely extends back decades.

The scandal has damaged Mitsotakis's conservative government, which began its second term in 2023.

Five high-ranking government officials, including a minister and three deputy ministers, have resigned over the scandal, though all maintain their innocence.

Investigators can now authorize "the confiscation of assets from those who wrongfully received these subsidies", Chrysochoidis added.

In March, European prosecutors charged several dozen Greek stockbreeders for falsifying pastureland ownership claims to receive EU aid.

The EU fined Greece 392 million euros in June over OPEKEPE's mismanagement of farm subsidies from 2016 to 2023.

Senior OPEKEPE officials under investigation have denied involvement in the fraud, reported Reuters. To enhance transparency, the government plans to shift OPEKEPE's duties to the state revenue authority. Reuters noted that the case has been referred to the Greek parliament, which is the sole authority able to investigate politicians, where a committee will examine OPEKEPE's management of EU funds.

Chrysochoidis said: "It's our duty ... to activate all available mechanisms, to prevent, and whenever needed, investigate, identify, and punish offenders."

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