An individual with ties to Corsican organised crime has been convicted of aggravated subsidy fraud involving payments under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

It followed a case taken by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Paris, France.

The man had claimed those payments while he was in detention, in connection with other criminal proceedings relating to organised crime.

Between November 21, 2017 and December 31, 2022, the man falsely declared in his applications for CAP payments that he was carrying out agricultural activities – despite being in prison at the time.

He was therefore unable to perform any agricultural activity personally.

He also declared an inflated number of cattle in order to obtain coupled CAP aid, resulting in damage of €120,025 to the EU budget.

Tribunal conviction for CAP fraud

The Paris Judicial Tribunal convicted the claimant and sentenced him to one year of imprisonment and ordered him to pay a €10,000 fine.

He will also have to pay damages of over €110,000 to France’s Agency for Services and Payments in Corsica (Agence de Services et de Paiement – ASP), the agency responsible for managing the funds.

The court also ordered the confiscation of assets previously seized in the course of the investigation, led by the EPPO, including bank accounts containing €63,000.

The man was banned from standing for election for five years and permanently prohibited from engaging in farming activities.

He has 10 days in which to lodge an appeal against the court’s decision.

The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union.

It  is responsible for investigating, prosecuting and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.