Tax Fraud: 20 Arrests, Monsignor Also Investigated

“We are looking at a real tax evasion workshop” say the investigators who for a year have followed every move of a group capable of issuing false invoices for over half a billion euros and earning 80 million euros. This is what was discovered by an investigation by the Guardia di Finanza coordinated by the Brescia Public Prosecutor's Office which led to the arrest of 20 people: 15 in prison and 5 under house arrest, while two are still wanted. In total there are 85 people under investigation residing in Brescia, Bergamo, Mantua, Milan, Rome, Parma, Perugia, Lodi, Modena, Reggio Emilia, Bari, Vicenza, Pavia, Naples and Verona. In short, practically all over Italy. The list includes local entrepreneurs, fixers, but also professionals: three lawyers, one from the Milan Bar, Roberto Golda Perini, another from Bari, Francesco Alimonda and one from Modena, Alessandro Bitonti were arrested and are in prison as well as two accountants registered with the Brescia register. Also registered in the register of suspects is Monsignor Francesco Cuccarese, a 90-year-old originally from Matera and former archbishop of Caserta and Pescara-Penne: he is accused of attempted money laundering for having tried to facilitate the opening of a current account at the IOR. “The attempt was blocked by the Vatican Police,” claims the investigators. “This investigation reveals a connection between entrepreneurs and accountants with professionals who made themselves available for criminal projects,” said the prosecutor of Brescia Francesco Prete. “The connection between entrepreneurs and professionals,” adds Prete, “confirms how necessary it is to penetrate professional orders to track down unfaithful professionals.” Through undue compensation and false invoices, the group took millions of euros abroad that first ended up in current accounts in Croatia, Slovenia and Hungary and were then brought back to our country. The investigation was based on wiretaps, "which allowed us to seize up to two million euros from people who came abroad to withdraw the money," explained prosecutor Claudia Passalacqua, who is in charge of the investigation. Deputy prosecutor Carlo Nocerino explained that "we are looking at a real tax evasion laboratory in Brescia. Local and foreign companies were involved in this association." Among the people involved was a Hungarian accountant whose job it was to hide the money from tax evasion. The investigation also revealed the figures of fixers who boasted of intermediation activities while pretending to be members of the police and secret services.