Naples – A €260 million VAT fraud in the fuel sector. This is what the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) discovered, which, at dawn this morning, launched a new phase of the "Fuel Family" operation.
At the request of the Bologna and Naples offices, the Guardia di Finanza (Italian Finance Police) carried out a preventive seizure of assets linked to the leadership of a widespread criminal organization specializing in the import and sale of petroleum products, systematically evading taxes.
Investigators have targeted a company formally registered to the wife of the ring's leader, a Campanian businessman already sentenced to eight years in prison on October 15th. Despite the fictitious ownership, the man retained full control. According to the investigation, the company operated a tax warehouse in Magenta (MI), a crucial hub for fueling the sprawling network of false invoicing.
The criminal scheme, known as "carousel fraud," was well-established. The fuel was imported from Croatia, Slovenia, and other EU countries through a chain of over 40 Italian "missing trader" companies.
These ad hoc companies purchased the product without paying the required VAT and disappeared, leaving a multi-million dollar hole in the state coffers. The fraudulent activities allegedly generated invoices for non-existent transactions totaling over €1 billion.
Today's operation is just the latest chapter in an investigation that, in March 2024, led to the dismantling of the group, comprising 59 suspects and 13 companies. At that time, precautionary measures were ordered against eight individuals and assets worth €20 million were seized, including a tourist resort and over 150 properties.
The group, whose members were often related by family ties, is also suspected of laundering over €35 million in illicit proceeds through bank accounts in Hungary and Romania, from which the funds were systematically withdrawn in cash.
The massive tax evasion not only generated illicit profits but also allowed the organization to sell fuel at rock-bottom prices, seriously distorting free competition and harming honest operators in the sector.
Changes and revisions to this article
- Article updated on 14/11/2025 at 10:39 - Content updated
- Article updated on 14/11/2025 at 10:50 - Content updated
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