Prague’s High Court on Monday upheld the conviction of European Parliament member Jana Nagyová in an EU grant fraud case. The case, known as Stork’s Nest, involves about €2 million and is linked to Agrofert, the agribusiness conglomerate associated with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.
The court confirmed the first-instance ruling: a three-year suspended prison sentence with a five-year probation period and a fine of 500,000 Czech koruna (about €20,000). Nagyová was found guilty of subsidy fraud and of damaging the financial interests of the European Union. The appellate ruling is now final. Her lawyers said they will file an extraordinary appeal with the Czech Supreme Court. Nagyová denies any wrongdoing.
Prosecutors say that in the late 2000s the Stork’s Nest recreational complex was formally spun off from Agrofert and placed behind bearer shares so it would appear to be a small or medium-sized enterprise. That allowed it to receive an EU grant for which a large holding would not have been eligible. The application was filed by Nagyová, then an adviser to Babiš. The site later returned to Agrofert’s orbit. The conglomerate subsequently repaid the subsidy.
Babiš was originally charged as well. In March the Chamber of Deputies refused to lift his parliamentary immunity, so the case against the prime minister was separated and suspended. The European Parliament waived Nagyová’s immunity in April. Babiš has called the prosecution politically motivated.
Czech authorities and the EU anti-fraud office OLAF have been investigating the case for years. In a separate track, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office is examining other subsidy payments to Agrofert group companies.