Fraud inquiry on Greek birth certificates

Greece is holding an emergency nationwide fraud investigation into birth certificates sparked by the case of the young girl found living in a gipsy camp.

Supreme Court prosecutor Efterpi Koutzamani ordered the inquiry for certificates issued after January 1, 2008, amid reports of benefit fraud by families declaring births in multiple regions.

Experts have used the case to point out the severe weaknesses in the country’s birth registration system.

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The mayor of Athens has suspended three officials in charge of record-keeping. New parents have three months to declare the births. Investigators found many babies had been recently declared at or near the end of that deadline, raising suspicions some were multiple declarations to claim benefits.

A Roma couple are being held charged with abduction and document fraud in the case of the girl known only as Maria. The girl, believed to be five or six, was taken into protective care last week after DNA tests established the couple were not her biological parents.

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