The European Union’s Anti-Fraud Office (“OLAF”) recommended that the Commission recover €293m to the EU budget, according to its annual report for 2020.
OLAF’s assessment of its work from last year showed that apart from fighting traditional fraud related to EU funds and cross-border crime, it had to act against fraudsters trying to benefit from the pandemic.
According to the agency’s director Ville Itälä, it identified over 1,000 suspicious businesses and contributed to the seizure of millions of counterfeit items, including face masks, hand sanitiser and testing kits, many of them dangerous for people’s health.
This year the agency faces another task as the rollout of the EU’s recovery funds starts, OLAF wants more coordination with member states and the new European Public Prosecutor’s Office to fight fraudsters willing to cheat with public funds.
Read the full report here.
Source: ec.europa.eu