Polish authorities have detained six people as part of a European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) investigation into suspected fraud involving €900,000 in flood-related financial support.
The investigation centres on compensation claims submitted by representatives of three companies between December 2024 and November 2025. The applicants provided documents purporting to demonstrate losses caused by the severe floods that hit south-western Poland in September 2024.
EPPO investigators, however, believe the claims may have been fraudulent because the floodwaters reportedly never reached the companies’ premises. Despite this, the Karkonoska Regional Development Agency (KARR), which manages programmes financed partly by EU funds, provided the applicants with at least €900,000 in loans. The six suspects include representatives of the companies involved and a former senior KARR official. They face allegations of subsidy fraud and submitting false statements in order to obtain the loans.
Investigators also searched the suspects’ homes and company premises, as well as the residence of an expert who had prepared an assessment of the alleged flood damage. Documents and electronic devices were seized during the searches. Following questioning, prosecutors asked the Katowice-East District Court to order pre-trial detention for three suspects, all of whom are company representatives. The other three were released under police supervision and required to provide financial guarantees. EPPO launched the investigation in August 2026 following a report from Poland’s Central Anti-Corruption Bureau in Wrocław, which is also assisting with investigative measures. All six suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty by a Polish court.