European Affairs Minister Gergana Passy met Tuesday with members of the special anti-fraud unit with the General Prosecuting Magistracy counteracting the mismanagement of EU funds, her cabinet said.

Prosecutor Margarita Popova, head of the team of prosecutors and investigation magistrates, reported on the team's activities since October. Those attending exchanged ideas on how the team's efficiency could be improved.

After the meeting, Passy said that she expressed her content with the unit's highly successful work and her encouragement to the team. According to her, it is important to note that all problems identified by the EC report are addressed and that the results are impressive, citing that in three months alone more indictments have been issued than in the previous three years.

Passy stressed that concrete results should be achieved by the time the EC report is released in July and that she sees the role of the audit units within the managing agencies as very important.

Popova told reporters that the unit should be alerted not only by the European Anti-Fraud Office but by the Bulgarian audit units as well.

Popova said that an agreement was signed with State Agriculture Fund Executive Director Alizan Yahova. Under the agreement, the fund will signal about irregularities and the unit in turn will send magistrates to investigate the cases.

Popova said that the anti-fraud unit has instituted 23 cases over the past three months and that a decision was made last week which reassigns 28 cases under the SAPARD and Da Vinci programmes to the unit.

Popova also said that although the unit is understaffed, its members are coping and that a couple of magistrates could be added to help with the workload.

Source: BTA