Kovesi: Europe is losing billions due to tax fraud

The European Union loses around 50 billion euros a year to tax and customs fraud, which has become the most attractive criminal activity in the bloc, and more efforts are needed to combat the gangs behind it, the EU's chief prosecutor has said.

Laura Codruta Kovesi spoke yesterday at the port of Piraeus in Athens, where the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) is leading a major investigation, Reuters reported.

“We want to send a strong message to the criminals behind this huge fraud: the rules of the game have changed, there are no more safe havens for you!” Kovesi told reporters in Piraeus. “We must fight back. As Europeans.”

Reuters writes that the EPPO is investigating a series of fraud cases that have rocked Greece, including one called "Calypso," which allegedly involved gangs whose network stretched from China to at least 14 EU countries and operated from Piraeus.

The agency seized more than 2.400 containers at the port, which is majority-owned by the Chinese company COSCO, the largest seizure to date in the EU.

The gangs allegedly falsely reported the value of goods arriving in the EU from China, resulting in lost VAT and customs revenue of around 800 million euros since 2017, according to the EPPO.

EPPO investigations in recent years also show that corruption in state structures, which contributed to Greece's 2009-2018 debt crisis, has not been eradicated. Some of the cases have damaged the popularity of the center-right government.

During a visit to Greece this week, Kovesi called for more prosecutors and resources for the EPPO office in Athens. Ministers pledged support.

She also called on Greece to amend laws that protect politicians from prosecution, adding that such immunity hinders EPPO investigations.

Reuters reports that the EPPO has referred two cases to the Greek parliament, the only body that can conduct investigations against ministers under the constitution.

One of these cases is related to the worst train accident in Greece in 2023. The latest case concerns Greek farmers and state officials suspected of defrauding the EU on pasture subsidies since 2019.