Five defendants — three French companies and two of their executives — have been convicted by the Paris Criminal Court over a fraud case involving €275,800 of EU funding for a waste treatment and recycling facility in the French Basque Country.
The two executives received suspended prison sentences of 11 months and 10 months respectively, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) announced on Wednesday.
They were also each fined €20,000, with €10,000 suspended, and barred from holding elected public office for eight months.
The three companies were given confiscation penalties totalling €275,800.
The money came from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), an EU programme that supports regional development projects across the bloc.
Irregularities found in funding application
The investigation began after the Regional Council of Nouvelle-Aquitaine identified irregularities in documents submitted to support an application for EU funding, according to the EPPO.
The main beneficiary company obtained the €275,800 by concealing that construction work and related financial operations had started before the funding application was submitted, and by providing falsified quotations and invoices to make the expenditure appear eligible under grant conditions.
The investigation was carried out by the French Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF) under EPPO direction.
The defendants admitted making false declarations to obtain EU funding and laundering the proceeds through banking transactions, the EPPO said. The convicted individuals repaid the full amount to the regional authority managing the ERDF programme in Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
The convictions followed a plea agreement approved by the court, and the defendants have 10 days to appeal.
