New subsidy probe file heading to Parliament
A total of 18 sitting and former lawmakers from the ruling New Democracy party are at the center of a second major investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office into the OPEKEPE farm subsidy scandal, according to case documents transmitted Wednesday to Greece’s Supreme Court.
The files were forwarded by European prosecutors to the Supreme Court and then to the Justice Ministry due to the involvement of political figures in the criminal probe. The ministry is expected to send the case files to Parliament on Thursday or, at the latest, Friday for further action.
Sources indicated that the case effectively consists of two separate files. The first concerns 11 sitting New Democracy lawmakers, for whom the parliamentary ethics committee is expected to initiate procedures to lift immunity. Among them are current ministers, though their alleged criminal involvement is not linked to ministerial duties but to their capacity as lawmakers.
The second case file concerns a former minister and a deputy minister of rural development. Proceedings for these two will follow Article 86 of the Constitution on ministerial responsibility, as with the first major OPEKEPE case involving Makis Voridis and Lefteris Avgenakis.
A third strand concerns five former lawmakers, whose cases will be handled directly by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Athens without parliamentary mediation.
The investigation concerns alleged offenses including breach of trust, fraud using a computer, and false certification. No charges have yet been filed, but the alleged crimes include both misdemeanors and felonies.
The probe covers the period from 2020 to 2021, with authorities accelerating the processing of evidence amid concerns that misdemeanor offenses risk expiring under the five-year statute of limitations.
The investigation began in 2020 following a complaint received by a prosecutor overseeing internal affairs regarding financial crimes tied to agricultural subsidies. Authorities lifted phone secrecy for suspects, though only part of the material was initially shared with European prosecutors.
Between 2024 and 2025, European prosecutors ordered full transcription and analysis of the material, a process carried out over the past six months by police organized crime units.
Recorded conversations included in the case file allegedly show lawmakers and officials discussing subsidy payments with then-OPEKEPE president Dimitris Melas.
Additional recorded material from 2022 through 2024 remains under review, with further case files expected.
Kathimerini
