MIA: More than €2.2M taken from state institutions and municipalities in vehicle‑registration scheme
Police say forged reports and a brokerage account were used to divert 138,877,419 denars from state bodies and municipalities.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) says it has dismantled a criminal network that embezzled public funds during vehicle registration payments, causing a total loss of about 138,877,419 denars (2,258,169 euros) to state bodies and municipalities.
Three people were arrested and criminal charges were filed against six individuals and three legal entities in an operation targeting manipulation and fabrication of reports on collected registration fees. The MIA reports the largest single hit—48,434,406 denars (about 788,000 euros)—was suffered by the Public Enterprise for State Roads (JPDP).
The first suspect named in the case is a 49-year-old S.S., the owner of a company in the village of Kuchevište that has been authorised to perform vehicle technical inspections since 2011. Authorities say the scheme ran from 01.01.2021 – 20.01.2026.
How investigators say the scheme worked
“In the period from 01.01.2021 – 20.01.2026 with intent to obtain for himself an unlawful property gain in the amount of 138 877 419 denars (around 2,2 million euros) he prepared and delivered false reports for collected fees during vehicle registration to the Public Enterprise for State Roads, the Red Cross, the Republican Council for Road Traffic Safety, the Ministry of Environment and the municipalities. When preparing the reports and falsifying the data, S.S. acted together with D.M., who was authorised to prepare and sign invoices and deliver reports to the competent institutions,” the MIA statement says.
Investigators say the money flow was concealed via an insurance brokerage company: instead of being recorded as registration fees, payments were posted to the broker’s account under insurance policies. Executives of the brokerage and the company owner are accused of moving funds between company accounts and mixing them with legitimate revenues, often labelled as loans, to buy real estate for the owner’s company.
Other suspects include employees at a vehicle inspection station in Kuchevište, a JPDP finance assistant identified as T.M. (64) who is accused of enabling the unlawful acquisition of 48,434,406 denars for the company from Kuchevište, and an authorised accountant M.D. (40) who allegedly recorded false data and tax filings that concealed the firm’s real finances.
The MIA says the scheme caused losses distributed as follows: 48,434,406 denars to the JPDP; 1,485,926 denars to the Red Cross; 5,585,098 denars to the Ministry of Environment; and 83,371,988 denars to municipal budgets and communal fees. In searches at multiple locations, police confiscated €27,735, 38,500 denars, 750 Swiss francs and $100, plus several mobile phones and two passenger cars.
Photo: Архива
