Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

High-profile SAPARD fraud case closed due to expiry of statute of limitations

Mario Nikolov
Photo: BGNES

After 13 years at various instances the case against businessman Mario Nikolov for siphoning off millions in EU funding under the SAPARD programme has been closed due to expiry of the statute of limitations.

The case was closed by the Appellate Specialized Criminal Court. The investigation was among the first in Bulgaria connected with embezzlement of European funding in which Mario Nikolov and several other defendants were charged. According to the prosecutor’s office they received European subsidies on the basis of forged documents, passing off old meat processing machines for new.

Thus the SAPARD saga activated by an OLAF report, is now over without convictions.

Reporting by Silvia Velikova, Horizont channel.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Cloudy and foggy weather expected on Thursday, temperatures in wide limits

On Thursday, minimum temperatures in Bulgaria will be in wide limits, from minus 6° - minus 8°C in places with fog, to about 5°C in the extreme southwestern regions of the country. In Sofia, it will be about minus 1°C.  During the day,..

published on 2/26/25 7:15 PM
Deputy Premier Tomislav Donchev

Bulgaria will try to save part of the second payment under the Recovery and Resilience Plan

Our country has a six-month deadline until the end of August 2025 to restart the process of adopting the laws related to the Recovery and Resilience Plan. This will be done in an attempt to save most of the second payment under the plan,..

published on 2/26/25 6:32 PM
Daniel Mitov

The Interior Ministry is performing well with the checks in the interior of the country after Bulgaria's entry into Schengen

The Ministry of Interior is performing well. There has been an increase in the amount of seized drugs and human traffickers caught at the Schengen borders , Minister of Interior Daniel Mitov said in response to a journalist's question about how the..

published on 2/26/25 4:48 PM