European prosecutors have launched an investigation into 21 Croatian citizens, including a public official and a former public official, over suspected corruption and subsidy fraud involving EU agricultural funds. Authorities say the alleged scheme may have sought to obtain €670,000 in EU money, of which €357,000 was already paid out.
European prosecutors have arrested 21 Croatian citizens in a probe into suspected corruption and subsidy fraud involving European Union agricultural funds, according to a statement from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Zagreb. The investigation centres on alleged misuse of subsidies from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund, with prosecutors saying the suspects include one public official and one former public official.
Arrests and investigation
As reported by the EPPO in Zagreb, the arrests were made yesterday in connection with a broader investigation into possible corruption and fraud involving agricultural subsidies. The office said evidence-gathering activities were also carried out in several counties in Croatia, indicating the probe extends across multiple locations.
The EPPO said the suspects are Croatian citizens and that the case concerns activities
“to the detriment of the EU’s financial interests”.
Prosecutors have described the suspected offences as abuse of office and authority, receiving and offering bribes, subsidy fraud and forgery of documents.
Alleged scheme
According to the EPPO, the investigation suggests that from 2020 onwards, a former expert formed a criminal association with two other suspects to help farmers obtain improper subsidies in exchange for money. The office said the group allegedly inflated land areas in official records and falsified documents to show agricultural activity, including fabricated invoices for manure sales and fake soil analyses.
The EPPO said the alleged operation involved applications for EU agricultural funding supported by fraudulent paperwork. Prosecutors also said the Head of the Agency’s branch office is suspected of working with at least four other farmers to help prepare and submit funding applications in exchange for illicit financial benefits.
Money at issue
The EPPO said the suspects allegedly tried to unlawfully obtain a total of €670,000 in EU funds. Of that sum, €357,000 had already been paid out, according to the prosecutors’ statement. The members of the criminal group reportedly received financial rewards amounting to at least €36,000 in total.
These figures indicate that the alleged fraud was not limited to attempted claims, but had already resulted in public money being disbursed before the investigation advanced. The EPPO’s statement does not identify the suspects by name, and it did not immediately say whether any of them had been formally charged.
Role of the agency
The EPPO said the case also involves the head of an agency branch office, who is suspected of coordinating with farmers in the preparation of subsidy applications. That allegation suggests possible abuse of a gatekeeping role inside the administrative system that handles agricultural incentives and subsidies.
The prosecutors’ account points to a mix of alleged administrative manipulation and financial inducements, which is why the EPPO listed several offences under investigation. The office said the facts may constitute abuse of office and authority, bribery, subsidy fraud and document forgery.
EPPO context
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office is an EU body responsible for investigating and prosecuting crimes affecting the bloc’s financial interests. In this case, the office in Zagreb is leading the investigation and coordinating with Croatian authorities on the ground.
The Croatian case comes amid wider scrutiny of farm subsidy fraud across Europe. Reuters noted that the investigation follows a scandal in Greece involving alleged fraud related to EU farm subsidies that has already drawn attention across the bloc.
Related proceedings
This is not the first EPPO case involving agricultural subsidies in Croatia. In October 2024, the EPPO said nine Croatian citizens were arrested in a separate probe into suspected subsidy fraud in pig farming, with allegations of defrauding more than €9 million in EU subsidies and forging official documents.
In July 2025, the EPPO also filed an indictment against two Croatian citizens over alleged agricultural subsidy fraud involving EAFRD funds. In another Croatian case reported in October 2025, six individuals and one company were convicted in a fraud case involving millions of euros in agricultural subsidies.
What comes next
The current investigation remains ongoing, and the EPPO has so far framed the case as suspected corruption and fraud rather than a concluded criminal finding. That means the suspects are still being investigated, and the legal process will determine whether charges, indictments or further arrests follow.
For now, the central allegation is that EU agricultural subsidy systems were exploited through inflated land records, fake documents and coordinated abuse of administrative procedures. The EPPO’s statement suggests the case could widen further as prosecutors assess additional evidence gathered across several Croatian counties.
Attribution and source notes
As reported by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Zagreb, the facts under investigation may constitute abuse of office and authority, receiving and offering bribes, subsidy fraud and forgery of documents. Reuters’ coverage, as reflected in secondary reporting, says the probe concerns 21 Croatian nationals and evidence-gathering in several counties in central Croatia.
