Money meant to support Greece’s fishing sector and fishing-dependent communities allegedly ended up funding cafés, restaurants, gyms, veterinary clinics, language schools, and luxury accommodations with swimming pools. In Crete, fishermen say they saw none of it.
That explosive allegation now sits with the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO).
And if you are wondering how a program called Fisheries and the Sea ended up helping businesses that have about as much to do with fishing as a cappuccino has to do with catching sardines, you are not alone.
€52 Million, but not for Fisheries
The Institute of Marine Conservation Archipelagos has submitted a report to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office alleging that at least €52 million from Greece’s 2014–2020 Fisheries and the Sea operational program was directed toward commercial activities considered unrelated to the sustainability of the fishing sector.
The list is eyebrow-raising: cafés, restaurants, veterinary clinics, physiotherapy practices, language schools, gyms, and luxury stone-built accommodation with swimming pools are among the cited activities.
Archipelagos says the €52 million is only the minimum amount requiring investigation, meaning the eventual figure could be higher.
The organization is not claiming that every recipient acted improperly. It is asking for the funding decisions and procedures to be fully investigated.
Cretan Fishermen Left Empty-Handed
On the ground in Crete, the betrayal of the fishing community is glaring. Yiannis Androulakis, president of the Heraklion Professional Fishermen Association, didn’t mince words regarding the scandal:
“The only thing I know as president is that not a single euro from the Leader program reached a fisherman,” Androulakis stated. “Instead, they gave the money out to build swimming pools, butcher shops, and various other things totally unrelated to our sector. If a real fisherman had been funded, we would have known, because they would have required certification from our association. We issued zero such certifications.”
Compounding the insult, local fishing representatives noted that regional development bodies summarily rejected legitimate sector proposals, such as renovating Heraklion’s traditional fish market—even as non-fishery commercial ventures scooped up millions.
“It Was Legal,” Say the Authorities
The Organization for the Development of Crete says the program-funded projects followed the program’s fully legal procedures.
The organization has pointed to the relevant ministerial decisions and says it has received no complaint establishing an irregularity.
Deputy Ministerial-level official Spyridon Protopsaltis also argued publicly that claiming funding a restaurant or tourist accommodation was automatically illegal simply because it was financed through the program would be misinformation.
And that is precisely why this case now needs something more useful than outrage from either side:
an independent examination of where the money went, why those activities qualified, and whether the rules themselves were used to redirect money away from the sector they were supposed to support.
The Fish Market Was Rejected
Perhaps the most telling detail comes from Heraklion’s traditional fish market.
Androulakis says an application was submitted to the Development Agency of Heraklion to renovate the historic fish market—an initiative with, one would imagine, a fairly straightforward connection to fishing.
It was rejected.
So while the sector itself was allegedly struggling to access program funding, the new program is reportedly preparing to launch with the same basic eligibility characteristics.
That raises an obvious question: What exactly has been learned from the previous program?
Was the Money Deliberately Redirected?
That is now one of the questions EPPO is asking.
Archipelagos is asking investigators to examine whether funding calls were deliberately designed to favor particular applicants or types of activities.
It also wants scrutiny of whether EU rules were followed in selecting, controlling, and implementing projects, and whether false declarations, conflicts of interest, misuse of funds, or political intervention played any role in unlawful payments.
The Next Fishing Program Is Coming
A new fisheries operational program is preparing to launch, with the Development Agency of Heraklion expected to coordinate the program in Crete.
The obvious question is whether the eligibility rules will change—or whether Crete is about to get another round of Fisheries and the Sea, with surprisingly little fishing.
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office must now determine whether evidence of wrongdoing exists and whether the procedures used to distribute the funds were lawful.
Until then, nobody should be declared guilty.
But equally, nobody should expect taxpayers and fishermen to shrug and say, well, at least the swimming pools were nice.