As many as eighteen people and two commercial companies were sent to court by prosecutors with the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) in a case regarding the unlawful obtainment of European funding for building some pig farms, worth 1.5 million euro, tax evasion respectively, which caused 800,000 Romanian lei worth of damages.
According to a DNA release, among those sent to court are Liviu Balanici, who is actually the representative of Pandora Impex SRL company; Cristina Balanici, an associate within the same company; Sergiu-Constantin Viziru and Monica-Maria Rabei, both of them representatives of Urbis Design SRL company, several representatives of other companies, the project manager, an economist, the chair of an agricultural cooperative, a defendant in absentia, namely Gabriel Nicolau, but also the two above-mentioned companies.
Prosecutors say that on 29 April 2011, Pandora Impex SRL company requested and on 1 February 2012 concluded a non-reimbursable funding contract from European funds, for implementing a project to build a pig breeding farm, in Andrieseni village, Iasi county, but several inaccurate documents/statements that don’t reflect reality were filed in order to support the funding application.
Through the respective contract, the Payment Agency for Rural Development and Fisheries committed to grant the respective company a non-reimbursable funding worth maximum 3,392,362 lei, the equivalent of 779,316 euro.
The payment application were based on these documents, as well as on other written evidence that were inaccurate and non-complying with reality. The Agency for Rural investment Funding (AFIR) made the settlement transactions worth 3,383,047.75 lei, in four tranches, in the benefit of Pandora Impex SRL company, according to investigators.
On the other hand, on 29 April 2011, Urbis Design SRL company requested and on 10 February 2012 concluded a non-reimbursable funding contract from European funds, for implementing a project to bild of a pig breeding farm, in Andrieseni village, Iasi county, on a land that was close to the one that the other company intended to carry out a similar investment.
Prosecutors reveal that several inaccurate and non-complying with reality documents/statements were submitted to support the funding request and through the respective contract the Payment Agency for Rural Development and Fisheries committed to grant Urbis Design SRL company a non-reimbursable funding worth maximum 3,385,759 lei, the equivalent of 777,799 euro.
The Agency for Rural Investment Funding (former Payment Agency for Rural Development and Fisheries) is the plaintiff within the criminal trial with the amount of 3,383,047.74 lei for the funding contract having Pandora Impex SRL as beneficiary and with the amount of 3,345,105.58 lei for the funding contract having Urbis Design SRL as beneficiary.
In respect to the tax evasion offenses of the case, the National Tax Administration Authority (ANAF) launched a civil action within the criminal trial with the amount of 808.265,75 lei.
In this case, a distraint was instituted over the immovable property belonging to the two companies.
The case was established based on notifications filed with the Fight Against Fraud Department (DLAF) and the Agency for Rural Investment Funding.
