OLAF finds no fraud in EU funds claimed by sheep farm reported by Nationalist MEP
EU anti-fraud agency OLAF will not pursue an investigation into the EU funds used for a sheep farm in Malta, which report was filed by Nationalist MEP Peter Agius
The EU’s anti-fraud agency OLAF will not pursue an investigation into the EU funds used for a sheep farm in Malta, which report was filed by Nationalist MEP Peter Agius.
OLAF informed farmer Kurt Buhagiar, the owner of the property used as a farm for some 100 sheep, that it had decided to close the investigation without recommendations for actions to be taken, given that the investigation did not establish any evidence of fraud or irregularity affecting the financial or other interests of the European Union.
The property in Għajn Riħana had been reported to OLAF by Agius on grounds that it is a villa built through €360,000 in EU funds meant for a sheep farm.
But it turned out that the property was actually a fully-fledged farm with close to 100 sheep and an up-and-running milk production facility.
Buhagiar was represented by lawyers Franco Debono and Arthur Azzopardi.
Buhagiar is also the developer of the Corradino site that claimed the life of Jean Paul Sofia in 2022, who stands charged in connection with the death of the young man.
Agius had claimed Buhagiar benefitted from three injections of EU funds which were used to “construct a private residence and ancillary holdings under the guise of a goat farm”.
The facility turned out to be fully licensed, with all sheep registered with the Veterinary Department and an approved Dairy Products Establishment registration.
Buhagiar first applied for EU funds in February 2017 and was granted almost €62,050 in EU funds for the restoration of rubble walls around his parcel of land. He forked out the remaining 20% of the cost of the project. This application was approved in May 2018.
In September 2019, he again applied for EU funds to cover the expenses related to the construction of the sheep farm. This was approved at the end of March 2020, and he received 50% in EU funding, amounting to €150,000, with the remainder being private funding.
The construction phase of the project was completed in March 2022. A few months later, in September, he filed the final application for funds to part-finance the purchase of modern equipment and machinery at the sheep farm. This application was approved in January last year and the equipment was purchased by September. He received 50% in EU funds, amounting to just over €146,600.
Buhagiar had denied Agius’s claims about his “close links” to the authorities which enabled him to receive the maximum European agricultural funds available that were managed by the EU Funds Managing Authority.
“I love these animals, from when I was a little boy. I have a passion for cheese production, and I will soon start another course at MCAST to garner more knowledge on this subject,” Buhagiar had told The Times.
“Had Peter Agius bothered to come here, I would have welcomed him and shown him round the premises like I did with you. He is still welcome to visit to see how this is a sheep farm and not a villa as he is claiming.”
Along with fellow Corradino developer Matthew Schembri, Buhagiar faces criminal charges of involuntary homicide in relation to the collapse of a timber factory development in December 2022 that buried six people and killed 20-year-old Sofia. Through his lawyers Franco Debono and Arthur Azzopardi, he is pleading not guilty.
The death of Sofia shocked the nation and following a relentless pursuit for justice by his family, led to a public inquiry which found the State responsible for a litany of failures that caused the young man’s death and led to the resignation of several senior officials. It, however, found no irregularities in the allocation of the land to Buhagiar and Schembri.
Buhagiar said he expected Agius to withdraw his allegations and retract his complaint with OLAF, adding that he would consider further legal steps in default.
Contacted by Times of Malta after its visit to the farm, Agius had said: “The question we should all ask is whether a property developer with several industrial and residential projects should be the beneficiary of EU funds for farmers, when hundreds of genuine applicants never get any funds.” He said Buhagiar benefitted not once but on three separate occasions, getting the maximum allowable funding each time.
“The allegations outed in the media and the Sofia inquiry should have been investigated way back by the authorities not only now after my initiative. Keep in mind that sheep are easily transported. I know that OLAF is now in charge of the case. I will continue fighting corruption using new methods, including in collaboration with OLAF, the European Prosecutors Office and using technical tools in EU legislation.”
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