Who is obliged to report offences to the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia? Section 16.4 of Act 14/2008 of November 5th, on the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia, imposes on the authorities and directors or heads of public offices a duty to notify the Office immediately of “any deeds they detect that might be deemed to constitute corruption or fraudulent or unlawful conduct contrary to the general interest”.
Who can contact the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia to report a case? Any other person may likewise inform the Office of cases presumed to constitute corruption, fraudulent practices or unlawful conduct that affect the general interest or the management of public funds.
How do I do this? In writing, setting out a circumstantial list of the facts (and stating your own identity). You can present this statement directly at the Office, or send it by electronic mail or administrative channels.
But what if I don’t want my identity to be known? All action by the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia is governed by the principle of utmost reserve. What is more, the Office staff have a duty of secrecy. If you so wish, however, the Act guarantees that you may ask for confidentiality to be maintained regarding your identity. In such cases the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia is obliged to keep reserved any data that might allow you to be identified.
I would be prepared to report a case, but I’m afraid of suffering reprisals. The Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia assumes an undertaking to provide assistance and advice to any person reporting or informing about cases and acting in good faith. If at any time you were subject to reprisals for having reported facts or deeds, then you can inform the Office of this and the Office will proceed to instigate or exercise vis-à-vis the competent authorities any corrective or reinstatement measures that may be required, while also leaving a record of the facts of the case in its annual report to the Parliament of Catalonia.
I have already lodged a report for the same facts with the police, the courts of law or the Public Prosecutor’s Office. Can I now report them again to the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia? No, not if you know that those authorities have initiated the pertinent investigations.
