“The Judiciary Police through the Criminal Investigation Department of Vila Real with the support of other PJ units, within the scope the investigation by the Public Prosecutor’s Office – DIAP Regional do Porto, carried out 60 home and outside searches, in which they targeted individuals, companies and public entities located in different municipalities across the country, such as Aveiro, Braga, Bragança, Coimbra, Guarda, Lisbon, Porto, Vila Real and Viseu”, says the PJ in a statement.

The PJ, Operation Gota D’água “was created due to the fraudulent activity of a laboratory responsible for the collection and analysis of water” intended for human consumption, wastewater, bathing water, swimming pools, catchments, streams, boreholes and wells, at issue are crimes of abuse of power, computer forgery, aggravated document forgery, criminal association, malfeasance, spread of disease and prescription forgery.

The 20 detainees, aged between 25 and 61, are employees and directors of the laboratory, as well as local directors and elected officials of management entities and companies (municipal councils and concessionary companies), with “several other defendants” also being constituted.

“The targeted laboratory, which is duly credited, falsified all sampling and analysis procedures related to the control of water for human consumption contracted by the managing entities (Municipal Councils, Intermunicipal Entities or other entities where that public service was granted), in collusion with some of the employees, directors and local representatives of these entities” explains the PJ.

According to the investigation, the fraudulent activity of the laboratory in question also manifested itself at the level of wastewater control, in the analysis to access the discharge licenses from Wastewater Treatment Stations (WWTP) in several municipalities.

The falsification, maintains the PJ, “aimed at reducing laboratory costs, putting into question the trust and reliability of the analysis results and consequently, the quality of water ingested daily by the communities”.

“The laboratory, whose fraudulent activity was targeted in this investigation, is considered to be a limited liability company, with capital distributed 50 percent by a multinational company (with similar activity to the entity targeted) and the remaining 50 percent with public capital, in the case for the equitable participation of 6 municipalities and an Association of Municipalities” reads the PJ statement.

The operation had the collaboration of the Water and Waste Regulation Services (ERSAR), the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA), the Health Authority and the General Inspection of Agriculture, Sea, Environment and Spatial Planning (IGAMAOT).

The detainees will be subjected to judicial interrogation to apply coercive measures.