They - or more likely a front company - claims the subsidies.
If a form goes in and the claim looks plausible, subsidies are paid. I strongly suspect title isn't checked.
Interestingly, the UK has a "squatter's rights" law not many people know about. If you fence off some land and use it, it effectively becomes your property after a number of years if no one challenges you.
I've seen people use this to extend their gardens into common land.
12 years (or at least it was in the early 90s): we let a neighbouring farmer graze his sheep on some land we had, but had to ceremoniously turf them out every so often to reset any possible claim in law.
That’s a part of the common law where it’s called adverse possession. In the US flavor of common law at least one can never adverse possess land owned by the government.
Interestingly, the UK has a "squatter's rights" law not many people know about. If you fence off some land and use it, it effectively becomes your property after a number of years if no one challenges you.
I've seen people use this to extend their gardens into common land.