site.btaMayor of General Toshevo Arrested in Probe into Subsidy Fraud Involving Social Housing

At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Sofia (Bulgaria), the Mayor of the city of General Toshevo (Dobrich province, Northeastern Bulgaria) was arrested on Wednesday, in a probe into subsidy fraud involving a project for increasing energy efficiency in social housing, the European Public Prosecution Office (EPPO) announced Wednesday.

Searches were carried out on August 9 in the premises of General Toshevo municipality, in the offices of public officials suspected of involvement in the crimes under investigation. Several witnesses and suspects will be questioned.

The facts date back to 2017–2019. At issue is a grant obtained by the municipality for a project to increase energy efficiency in multifamily residential buildings, financed by the European Union, to the amount of EUR 169,000 (approximately BGN 330,000). The project was designated to a private contractor.

According to the evidence, public officials involved in the project, including the Mayor, presented untrue information regarding the implementation of the works, which had not been concluded by the established deadline.