EPPO: five arrests in €114 million VAT fraud investigation
Searches and seizures also took place in Greece. Estimated tax losses are not seized funds; the presumption of innocence applies.
Five suspects were arrested this week in an investigation into alleged cross-border VAT fraud, EPPO announced on 16 October 2026. Three arrests took place in Cyprus, one in Germany and one in Italy, at the request of its Munich office.
Searches and seizures took place in Greece; no arrest here is announced. The operation involved 12 searches in total at suspects’ and companies’ premises, with authorities from four countries participating.
According to prosecutors, the suspected smartphone-trading scheme used companies and missing traders in Germany, Albania and Sweden. Estimated tax losses are €80 million in Sweden and €34 million in Germany — not seized funds or an announced loss to Greece’s public finances.
Up to €80,000 was frozen in bank accounts; vehicles and real estate were seized in Cyprus, Greece and Italy. The case is linked to investigation Midas. All concerned are presumed innocent until guilt is established in the competent German courts; arrests are not convictions.
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