Naples – A tax fraud involving over €60 million, a network of companies spread across the country, and a sophisticated invoicing system for non-existent transactions. This is the picture reconstructed by the Avellino Financial Police, following a complex tax audit stemming from a previous investigation delegated and coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
The investigation uncovered a complex tax evasion scheme involving ten companies. The investigation focused on an Irpinia-based company operating in the electronics sector, with several outlets in the Irpinia and Salerno regions.
The network of "shell" companies
According to the reconstruction by the Economic and Financial Police Unit, the central element of the scheme was a network of "shell" companies, businesses without a concrete corporate structure and, according to the investigation, created or used to issue tax documentation relating to non-existent transactions.
This mechanism would have generated a complex network of false invoices, allowing the company under investigation to evade VAT payments of over 7 million euros.
This mechanism can be traced back to the so-called "carousel" fraud, one of the most complex systems used to circumvent tax obligations and obtain undue VAT benefits.
The previous seizure of 5 million
The Irpinia-based company was apparently not immune to the investigators' attention. Already in September 2025, it had been subject to a precautionary seizure worth approximately €5 million, ordered by the investigating judge of the Avellino Court.
That provision was subsequently definitively confirmed by the Court of Cassation last July, consolidating the judicial framework developed during the previous investigative activity.
It should be emphasized that the well-known commercial brand under which the company's stores operate is completely unrelated to the investigation.
The offensive against VAT fraud
The operation is part of a broader investigative strategy by the Avellino Public Prosecutor's Office and the Financial Police to combat tax fraud, with particular attention to the mechanisms used to evade VAT.
A phenomenon that, in addition to causing damage to state coffers, alters the rules of competition, penalizing companies that operate in compliance with tax obligations.
The investigators' goal is therefore also to protect the healthy economic fabric of the province of Avellino by combating fraudulent networks that can allow unscrupulous economic operators to gain an unfair advantage over companies that comply with tax regulations.
The case is currently in the preliminary investigation phase. The measures adopted are precautionary in nature and can be challenged in the appropriate legal venues.
The recipients of the measures are, therefore, people under investigation and presumed innocent until a final sentence is reached.
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