Charges of fraud have been brought against four suspects following an investigation into a project to design and build signalling and telecommunication systems on the Bulgarian rail network, according to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Sofia.
The project, which concerns the railway section between Plovdiv and Burgas – a distance of just over 250 kilometres, is worth over 94.5 million euros in EU financing. Maersk started operating on the line in 2022 to carry freight inland from the port of Burgas.
The contract for the execution of the project was awarded to a consortium formed by four companies. Two managers of an Italian company and the manager of a Bulgarian company, part of the consortium that won the contract, have been charged with public procurement fraud. A former director of Bulgaria’s National Company Railway Infrastructure (NCRI) has also been charged.
False information
EPPO revealed that bail of 50 000 euros was imposed on three of the accused, and of 5,000 euros for the fourth. In addition, the manager of the Bulgarian company is prohibited from leaving the country.
According to the investigation, the legal representatives of the companies which formed the consortium submitted false information to the NCRI Iin order to illegally obtain EU funds.
In particular, they declared that one of the companies had previous experience of Global Systems for Mobile Communication on Railway (GSM-R) and of the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS), which allowed them to win the tender. However, based on the evidence, none of the four companies had the necessary experience.
It is understood that the former general director of the NCRI signed the contract and authorised the payments, despite knowing that the information submitted was untrue.