Riga, Feb 5 (LETA) - Investigators suspect that, as a result of criminal activities by officials of the Ogre District Hospital and Liepaja Regional Hospital, both medical institutions may have overpaid more than EUR 300,000 when concluding contracts with suppliers of medical goods, according to a statement issued by the Corruption Prevention Bureau (KNAB).

The criminal proceedings investigated by KNAB are related to alleged illegal agreements between hospital officials and certain suppliers of medical supplies, who were responsible for five public tenders.

Information in the possession of KNAB shows that public officials of the two hospitals allegedly abused their official positions and illegally negotiated with two suppliers of medical goods to win five public tenders implemented by the hospitals. In order to ensure that these companies won, the technical specifications of the tenders were tailored to the requirements of the specific suppliers of medical supplies.

The contracts affected by the offenses exceed EUR 300,000, financed from the Latvian and European Union (EU) budgets.

The criminal proceedings involved searches at more than 20 sites in different parts of Latvia, including Liepaja Regional Hospital and Ogre District Hospital. Seven people involved in the criminal proceedings have the right to a defense.

KNAB explained that the two criminal proceedings under investigation are related to alleged offenses at Liepaja Regional Hospital. One criminal proceeding was initiated by KNAB on January 16 this year on suspicion of alleged abuse of official position for financial gain. KNAB is investigating the case in cooperation with the Public Prosecutor's Office for the Investigation of Crimes in the Service of State Institutions.

The second criminal case involving Liepaja Regional Hospital was opened by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) on December 2, 2025, on suspicion of alleged preparation to commit large-scale fraud and abuse of office for pecuniary interest.

On November 24, 2025, the EPPO opened criminal proceedings in relation to the Ogre District Hospital on suspicion of alleged large-scale fraud and abuse of official position with serious consequences.

Both criminal proceedings were initiated by EPPO after KNAB forwarded the material to the Prosecutor's Office for assessment, in line with the requirements of EU legislation. After the opening of the case, EPPO referred the case to KNAB for investigation.

According to KNAB, the healthcare sector has come under its scrutiny in recent years. In 2024, KNAB concluded a corruption risk analysis assessing the link between public procurement carried out by several Latvian hospitals and the donations made by the winners of these tenders. KNAB also informed officials of the Health Ministry about the conclusions of the analysis.