The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, has arrested two suspects for their role in a customs fraud scheme involving biodiesel imports.
The total damage to the EU budget was estimated at over €60M (US$62.3M), with €49M (US$50.9M) of that taking place in the Netherlands, the EPPO said in a statement on 20 February.
According to the EPPO, the suspects allegedly imported biodiesel of US origin into the European Union (EU) while falsely declaring its country of origin as Morocco.
The two suspects have been in pre-trial detention in Belgium since May 2024, in relation to an EPPO investigation led by the Brussels office.
The same suspects were surrendered to the Netherlands under a European arrest warrant, as the court in Rotterdam had ordered their pre-trial detention in another investigation led by the Rotterdam office of the EPPO.
In the second investigation, it was believed that the two suspects imported biodiesel of US origin into the Netherlands while fraudulently declaring it as biodiesel made from used cooking oil (UCOME), originating from Bosnia and Herzegovina, when it was biodiesel from other oils, such as soya methyl ester (SME), which is a cheaper alternative. The EPPO alleged they did so to evade EU anti-dumping duties, which apply to biodiesel produced in the US due to its government subsidies and lower production costs.
Initially reported to the EPPO by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD) was conducting the investigation in the Netherlands.
In the Dutch and Belgian courts of law, the suspects were presumed innocent until proven guilty and the investigation in Belgium was ongoing, the EPPO said.
The EPPO is responsible for investigating, prosecuting and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.
