Pegaso Investigation: Former Director of Multiversity Also Under Investigation

Over 4200 registrations for training courses, degrees, masters and specialization courses: at the heart of theinvestigation of the Naples prosecutor's office, Unipegaso during the management of the entrepreneur Danilo Ierviolino and the Multiversity company, with its former operational and commercial director Andrea Bonomo.

These two are the main suspects in the investigation, which involves 40 people and is suspected of various crimes, including corruption for acts contrary to official duties, undue inducement to give or promise benefits, ideological falsehood committed by a public official in public documents, and other crimes against public administration and public trust.

The investigation involves former managers, administrative officials, local representatives, and people external to Pegaso but connected to the network of guidance centers affiliated with the university.

Unipegaso has announced that it is an injured party in the criminal proceedings opened by the Prosecutor's Office. The incidents under investigation, the university maintains, are isolated and date back several years, and are limited to a very limited number of students who made false statements and former employees. These employees are no longer associated with the institution, having been removed following internal investigations and disciplinary proceedings.

According to the investigators' reconstruction, also based on technical checks carried out by the competent institutional bodies, the contested facts can be traced back to the period in which the UniPegaso It was Iervolino and would continue in the following years, until 2025, with the aim of increasing the university's competitiveness on the market, expanding the number of enrolled students and increasing revenues from the educational offering.

Investigators are alleging deficiencies in internal control and supervision systems, in the management of enrollment procedures, in relationships with affiliated local centers, and in the organization of remote courses, internships, and exams.

The investigation, coordinated by Deputy Prosecutor Sergio Ferrigno and directed by Deputy Prosecutors Vincenzo Piscitelli, Henry John Woodcock, and Francescapaola Colonna Romano (the latter currently employed by the Nola Prosecutor's Office but assigned to this proceeding), has already led the financial police of the Economic and Financial Police Unit to carry out a series of personal, home, and computer searches.

The issuance of the search warrant brought the matter before the Review Court at the request of the defense attorneys of some of the suspects. Thus, the investigation, conducted under the radar by investigators and which led the Prosecutor's Office to interview several prominent witnesses, including the Minister of Universities and Research, Anna Maria Bernini, who had no involvement in any of the alleged events, came to light.

In 2021, Unipegaso was sold by entrepreneur Danilo Iervolino to the CvC Capital Partners fund, through the Multiversity holding company that currently manages Unipegaso and other digital universities.

Iervolino, who had continued the family business, particularly his father's, in private schools and educational institutions, decided to leave Unipegaso between 2021 and 2022 to focus on entrepreneurial management of the Salernitana football club and in the publishing sector with the weekly magazine L'Espresso.

Finance officers from the Economic and Financial Police Unit conducted personal, home, and computer searches to assess over 4.200 registrations deemed irregular, which allegedly involved training courses, bachelor's degrees, and specialized master's degrees. The disputes specifically concern training courses for professional socio-pedagogical educators.

During the investigation, numerous hearings have already been held before the Review Court, called upon to rule on the appeals lodged against the seizure and search orders issued by the Prosecutor's Office. According to the documents, the decisions confirmed their legitimacy.

Sources close to the university specify that the university has launched an internal audit that has led to the filing of a formal complaint to the authorities, primarily regarding checks on enrollment requirements for a professional training course.

The case involving Maria Rosaria Boccia—the Pompeii entrepreneur at the center of the scandal with former Minister Sangiuliano—accused of plagiarism for a thesis in economics and management at Unipegaso parallels the investigation into professional training courses and enrollment. Indeed, sources close to the online university have pointed out that it was the university itself that initiated the investigation.