16/07/2012 (Agence Europe) - Criminal proceedings against Romanian MEP Adrian Severin. The Romanian national anti-fraud prosecutor's office announced on Monday 16 July that it had opened “criminal proceedings” against Romanian MEP Adrian Severin (Non-Attached) for “forgery and use of forgeries which resulted in money being illegally obtained from the general budget of the European Communities with serious consequences”, the prosecutor's office said in a press release. Severin stands accused of concluding fictitious consultancy contracts with Romanian companies which allowed “close associates illegally to obtain the sum of €436,663 from the European Parliament budget” between 2007 and 2010, the prosecutor's office added. Severin has already been charged with accepting bribes for favours after he told journalists pretending to be lobbyists that he would “sell his services” for sums of up to €100,000. (CG/transl.rt)