Rodolphe Ballaera, Paolo Falavigna, and Antonio Lo Manto, believed to be the leaders of a vast criminal organization with ramifications across Europe, chose to exercise their right to remain silent during questioning. This organization, uncovered by the European Public Prosecutor's Office, is accused of carrying out VAT fraud worth over €500 million, operating in the electronics and IT sectors.
The investigation uncovered a complex system of false invoices issued across several European Union countries, also involving the Sicilian Mafia and the Neapolitan Camorra. According to investigators, the illicit proceeds were reinvested in the fraud network and used to support the criminal activities of the organizations involved.
Among the arrested leaders, Antonio Lo Manto is a member of the Brancaccio mafia clan, while Salvatore Tamburrino, Vincenzo Perrillo, and Espedito Colonna are considered "connections" to the Neapolitan Camorra. The latter ensured cooperation between the various criminal organizations, resolving disputes and ensuring the sharing of profits.
The investigation led to the seizure of assets worth over €500 million, including resorts, properties, and luxury cars.
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According to investigators, the organization allegedly "financially supported mafia-style groups, including the Di Lauro Camorra clan from Scampia and the Nuvoletta Camorra clan from Marano di Napoli, reinvesting the illicit proceeds in VAT fraud and subsequently channeling the profits into the overall support of the criminal organization."
According to the prosecution, the Cosa Nostra contacts of the organization were Antonio Lo Manto and Pietro Conoscenti, while Salvatore Tamburrino, Vincenzo Perrillo, and Espedito Colonna were the links with the Neapolitan "Camorra," and guaranteed "mutual correctness in the management of business, the recovery of sums of money resulting from any management shortfalls," and sought to "resolve conflicts and disputes, not only of a financial nature, that may arise between the various members and between them and external parties used in the national and international VAT fraud circuit."
Also implicated in the investigation is Roman Marco Mezzatesta, who, through his own independent organizational structure, with offices in Fiumicino at Connex Italy srl, maintained collaborative relationships with other criminal groups by offering them brokerage services. The tax evasion, carried out using the complex carousel fraud mechanism, involved the electronics and IT products sector and affected several EU countries (the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania), also involving 20 foreign companies.
Comments (2)
An important operation to defeat such a large criminal organization, we hope that this battle against crime continues successfully.
News like this is alarming and demonstrates the importance of fighting organized crime internationally.