Updated April 6, 2026: The investigation has led to ministerial resignations and a government reshuffle, increasing pressure on the government.
European prosecutors have taken a significant step in one of Greece’s most politically charged corruption cases, formally asking Parliament to lift the immunity of 11 sitting lawmakers so investigators can pursue allegations of fraud involving EU farm subsidies.
The request comes from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, which has been probing how Greece’s agricultural payments agency, OPEKEPE, distributed EU funds and who may have helped steer those funds improperly.
The investigation has already begun to reshape the political landscape. In recent days, the case has led to ministerial resignations and a government reshuffle, underscoring the growing pressure on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis as the probe expands.
The 11 lawmakers, reported by Reuters to be members of the ruling New Democracy party, have not been named publicly. Neither has the former Minister of Rural Development and Food nor the former deputy minister whose cases have been referred separately to Parliament under constitutional rules that require parliamentary approval before ministers can be investigated for actions taken in office.
The allegations are specific: subsidies claimed for land with little or no agricultural use, livestock numbers that existed on paper but not in fields, and payments flowing to individuals without corresponding farming activity. Greek and international media have reported that a disproportionate share of the suspected abuse was concentrated in Crete, a detail that has added political sensitivity given Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s ties to the island.
The case has already had financial and political consequences. Greece faces a €392 million EU fine tied to subsidy mismanagement, and the investigation has now led to multiple resignations within the government and the appointment of new officials, including Margaritis Schinas to a key cabinet role, signaling the broader political impact of the probe.
For prosecutors, the path forward is complicated. European rules require that when evidence implicates ministers for actions taken while in office, the case must be handed to Parliament rather than pursued directly. The EPPO has said this constraint effectively forces a split investigation and limits its ability to fully carry out its mandate.
Parliament now holds the next move. If immunity is lifted, investigators can proceed with further steps in the case. The outcome will determine whether the investigation can move forward at the political level.
Cosmos Philly previously examined how EPPO prosecutor Popi Papandreou became a reference point in Greece’s broader debate over justice and accountability.
The latest developments bring that debate into a more immediate political phase, as the case increasingly tests how Greece handles oversight of EU funds at the highest levels of government.