Bulgarian businessman jailed for EU fraud

(SOFIA) - A Bulgarian court sentenced a businessman to 12 years in jail Wednesday for pocketing millions of euros in EU farm aid in a fraud case seen by Brussels as a test of the country's judiciary.

Mario Nikolov was imprisoned by the court in Sofia for buying second-hand equipment for the meat processing industry then forging the paperwork to the EU to present it as new. The prosecution had demanded a sentence of 17 years.

The scheme allowed Nikolov -- currently in custody pending an appeal against a separate 10-year sentence for money laundering -- to siphon off 7.5 million euros (9.2 million dollars) in EU subsidies.

Nikolov's wife was given a five-year sentence, much lower than the 14 years prosecutors had been demanding.

Of a total of seven alleged accomplices, four were jailed for 10 years, one was given a suspended three-year sentence and the other two were found not guilty.

The scheme, which was uncovered shortly after Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007, prompted Brussels to subsequently freeze over 100 million euros in farm aid to Bulgaria.

In addition to the jail terms, Nikolov and his wife and four of the accomplices will also see half of their property confiscated, the court said.

In a separate trial in March, the businessman was already sentenced to 10 years in prison for laundering the EU money he pocketed, but he has not yet served any of that term, pending his appeal.

The EU Commission in Brussels is closely scrutinizing Bulgaria for failing to effectively prevent misuse of EU aid money and jail the perpetrators.