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Authorities in Italy have carried out 22 arrests and seized assets totaling over 600 million euros ($638 million) as part of an inquiry into fraud linked to the European Union (EU) COVID-19 pandemic recovery fund.
Items confiscated during the raids included villas, Rolex watches, Cartier jewelry, gold, cryptocurrencies, and high-end vehicles such as Lamborghinis and Porsches. With police investigations into the Qatargate scandal is still ongoing, this latest embarrassment comes at a time when the European political bloc’s reputation for financial probity is already deeply damaged.
Three of the 22 arrests were made in Slovakia, two in Austria, with the remainder taking place in Italy. Simultaneous searches were also conducted in Romania. In carrying out the arrests, Italian law enforcement officials are said to have worked closely with staff from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO). Notably, therefore, while the EPPO’s 2023 annual report revealed an overall total of 1,927 ongoing investigations involving 19.2 billion euros in suspected fraud, some believe this may simply be the tip of the iceberg.
In an additional new probe, the EPPO and authorities in Greece are also examining allegations of fraud related to the distribution of 2.5 billion euros in EU COVID-19 recovery funds to Greek companies. Here, the investigation focuses on suspicions that firms colluded to limit competition during public tender processes, potentially inflating fees. The allegations reflect growing concerns over a lack of transparency and fair competition in the EU’s distribution of recovery funds across its member states.
Ironically, it appears the alleged fraudsters may have found it easier to access the funds than most of the EU’s member states. According to reports, European governments have received less than a third of the bloc’s original 723 billion euro pandemic recovery pot and are pushing for the payouts to be speeded up. However, the European Court of Auditors, the EU’s auditing watchdog, believes that weak safeguards are increasing the scope for fraud. Even prior to the launching of the Italian and Greek investigations, the Court had openly warned of possible corruption in the spending of the funds.
In this respect it is now clear that crime syndicates have become skilled at pocketing money distributed by the EU for development and reconstruction. Given that cryptocurrencies, artificial intelligence (AI), and offshore servers were reportedly used to facilitate the Italian fraud, it seems the bloc’s stated ambition to become a world leader in the regulation of AI is already being undermined.
With its post-COVID-19 recovery fund rapidly turning into a full-scale political disaster, the EU is increasingly facing calls for transparency over what has happened to the money. Some observers worry that the bulk of it may never be recovered. Either way, the billions borrowed to create the fund will eventually have to be repaid, which means that the ultimate victims will likely be European taxpayers. Already squeezed by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, and with elections to the European Parliament due to be held between 6-9 June, voters may well decide to vent their anger at the ballot box.
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This article was originally published on Dr. Rath Health Foundation.
Executive Director of the Dr. Rath Health Foundation and one of the coauthors of our explosive book, “The Nazi Roots of the ‘Brussels EU’”, Paul is also our expert on the Codex Alimentarius Commission and has had eye-witness experience, as an official observer delegate, at its meetings. You can find Paul on Twitter at @paulanthtaylor
He is a regular contributor to Global Research.
Featured image is from DHRF/Adobe Stock
The Worldwide Corona Crisis, Global Coup d’Etat Against Humanity
by Michel Chossudovsky
Michel Chossudovsky reviews in detail how this insidious project “destroys people’s lives”. He provides a comprehensive analysis of everything you need to know about the “pandemic” — from the medical dimensions to the economic and social repercussions, political underpinnings, and mental and psychological impacts.
“My objective as an author is to inform people worldwide and refute the official narrative which has been used as a justification to destabilize the economic and social fabric of entire countries, followed by the imposition of the “deadly” COVID-19 “vaccine”. This crisis affects humanity in its entirety: almost 8 billion people. We stand in solidarity with our fellow human beings and our children worldwide. Truth is a powerful instrument.”
Reviews
This is an in-depth resource of great interest if it is the wider perspective you are motivated to understand a little better, the author is very knowledgeable about geopolitics and this comes out in the way Covid is contextualized. —Dr. Mike Yeadon
In this war against humanity in which we find ourselves, in this singular, irregular and massive assault against liberty and the goodness of people, Chossudovsky’s book is a rock upon which to sustain our fight. –Dr. Emanuel Garcia
In fifteen concise science-based chapters, Michel traces the false covid pandemic, explaining how a PCR test, producing up to 97% proven false positives, combined with a relentless 24/7 fear campaign, was able to create a worldwide panic-laden “plandemic”; that this plandemic would never have been possible without the infamous DNA-modifying Polymerase Chain Reaction test – which to this day is being pushed on a majority of innocent people who have no clue. His conclusions are evidenced by renown scientists. —Peter Koenig
Professor Chossudovsky exposes the truth that “there is no causal relationship between the virus and economic variables.” In other words, it was not COVID-19 but, rather, the deliberate implementation of the illogical, scientifically baseless lockdowns that caused the shutdown of the global economy. –David Skripac
A reading of Chossudovsky’s book provides a comprehensive lesson in how there is a global coup d’état under way called “The Great Reset” that if not resisted and defeated by freedom loving people everywhere will result in a dystopian future not yet imagined. Pass on this free gift from Professor Chossudovsky before it’s too late. You will not find so much valuable information and analysis in one place. –Edward Curtin
ISBN: 978-0-9879389-3-0, Year: 2022, PDF Ebook, Pages: 164, 15 Chapters
Price: $11.50 FREE COPY! Click here (docsend) and download.
We encourage you to support the eBook project by making a donation through Global Research’s DonorBox “Worldwide Corona Crisis” Campaign Page.
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