EU public prosecutor to investigate budget crimes

The European Union’s first public prosecutor’s office will take up its work on June 1 and begin investigating crimes linked to the EU budget, the European Commission said on Wednesday.

The office can prosecute several crimes, including fraud related to the bloc’s budget.

It can also go after criminals who launder money they received by defrauding the EU budget, for example.

How the EU is spending its money has come under increased scrutiny over the past years.

In 2019, a New York Times investigation showed how the EU budget was used in Central and Eastern Europe to finance corrupt deals.

“European prosecutors, under the strong leadership of Laura Kovesi, will clamp down on criminals and make sure no euro is wasted on corruption or fraud,’’ European Commissioner Vice President Vera Jourova said during a press conference.

The main office will be in Luxembourg, with member states sending one European prosecutor each.