site.btaJustice Minister Briefs European Chief Prosecutor on Planned EPPO Reforms in Bulgaria

Justice Minister Georgi Georgiev informed European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kovesi about the expected reforms concerning the activities of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Bulgaria, the Justice Ministry’s press centre said on Tuesday.

The two met during the Bulgarian Justice Minister’s visit to Luxembourg.

Georgiev said that his Ministry has drafted a bill amending the Criminal Code to ensure the effective functioning of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Bulgaria and to address practical problems identified in the work of the delegated prosecutors in the country, particularly in relation to the legal qualification of offences involving European Union (EU) funds.

The draft bill, prepared jointly with representatives of the Supreme Court of Cassation, Sofia City Court, Supreme Cassation Prosecution Office, the EPPO, the Finance Ministry, the Customs Agency, and the academic community, transposes the EU directive on the fight against fraud affecting the EU’s financial interests.

The Criminal Code will now also cover EU officials and clearly define what constitutes “EU funds” to avoid contradictory judicial practice, the Minister added.

Among the proposals in the bill are the introduction of qualified offences of mismanagement and malfeasance involving EU funds and affecting the Union’s financial interests, as well as qualified customs fraud aimed at evading duties payable to the EU budget, among others.

During the meeting, Minister Georgiev also informed Chief Prosecutor Kovesi about the government’s provision of a new building in Sofia for the delegated prosecutors.