FRAUD TO THE DETRIMENT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION – THE DIA CARRIES OUT 7 PRE-TRIAL MEASURES

The Direzione Investigativa Antimafia, together with the Carabinieri Agri-Food Protection Unit, enforced  pre-trial measures , issued, upon proxy of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), office in Palermo, by the G.I.P. of the Court in Siracusa against 7 persons, allegedly held liable, in various degrees, for the offence of aggravated fraud, forgery of a public document and re-use of money or goods of illicit origin.

The investigation was triggered during checks, carried out for the purpose of issuing antimafia bans, allowed to establish that 16 suspects – belonging to families close to organized crime  – illegally managed to obtain 900,000 EUR from the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF). These persons succeeded in claiming that they owned and had the availability of agricultural land, by submitting false sales and rental contracts, yet the land had been seized by the Judicial Authority. Overall, the investigation unveiled 13 frauds which were approved by the GIP in Siracusa.

Approving the circumstantial framework developed by the DIA and the Carabinieri Unit Agri-Food Protection, the G.I.P. of the Court in Siracusa, upon request of EPPO, ordered against 6 suspects the measure of reporting to the police station , whereas the other person was in mandatory  residence in the town where he lived.

Catania, 15 November 2023