Brussels, 04/06/2007 (Agence Europe) - The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the Brussels public prosecution office have opened an investigation into an alleged case of “European civil servant corruption”, the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir revealed in its edition of 2 and 3 June. Six or seven civil servants in charge of Commission infrastructure are said to have awarded fictitious maintenance contracts with employees of a Belgian industrial cleaning company, Pedus, whose headquarters are in Zellik, in Flemish-speaking Brabant.
According to Le Soir, the management of Pedus is believed to have over-invoiced the Commission for its cleaning services. It is said to have declared a number of hours greater than the number of hours worked, and invoiced a higher salary for certain maintenance agents than it paid to them. False attendance lists, drawn up by the company Pedus, are believed to have been countersigned by civil servants whose complicity had apparently been assured.
In a press release, Olaf states that the investigation relates mainly to companies and/or persons external to the Community institutions. Olaf started its investigations in June 2005, after information was passed to it by the Commission and an informer within the company Pedus. Olaf forwarded the case to the Belgian federal public prosecution office on 1 March, which then forwarded it to the Brussels prosecution service. Olaf states that the financial impact of this fraud cannot yet be evaluated and that the total volume of the contracts in question stands at €44 million between 2003-2007. (lc)