Twenty precautionary measures are carried out by soldiers from the Guardia di Finanza of Cerignola and the Economic and Financial Police Unit of Foggia for an alleged five million euro scam linked to the fictitious hiring of hundreds of fake agricultural workers and their entry into Italy for work reasons .
Eleven suspects ended up in prison, four under house arrest, one was subjected to a residence ban in the province of Foggia and four to measures prohibiting the exercise of entrepreneurial activities.
The suspects reached by precautionary measures are entrepreneurs, professionals and public officials (one in service at the INPS, and another former prefectural official), accused in various capacities of criminal association, aggravated fraud to obtain public funds, aiding and abetting the illegal immigration, embezzlement, money laundering, forgery of public documents, forgery of seals and trafficking in illicit influence.
Five million worth of seizures were carried out.
There are two lines of the investigation coordinated by the Foggia Prosecutor's Office: the first concerns an alleged social security and welfare scam carried out by four 'ghost' companies and relating to the hiring of 647 fake agricultural workers and subsidies (agricultural unemployment, family allowances, sickness and maternity ) unduly received for two million euros;
the second concerns having favored, upon payment of sums of money, the entry into the national territory of non-EU citizens through false recruitment.
The first line of investigation led to the arrest (in prison) of an agricultural entrepreneur who, thanks to the collaboration of a tax and labor consultant, placed under house arrest, allegedly created 'ghost' agricultural businesses and perfected the hiring of laborers with the complicity - according to the prosecution - of the manager of a Caf in Cerignola and another suspect, who ended up under house arrest and in prison respectively.
In case of problems, the Caf availed itself of the complicity of an INPS official, placed under house arrest.
Parallel to this trend is the one relating to the entry into Italy of non-EU citizens (who paid 3000 euros each) in exchange for fake hires, again carried out by 'ghost' companies who would have asked for the hiring of 337 non-EU workers benefiting from the decree Flows.
Hence the charge of the crime of aiding and abetting illegal immigration.
The other measures concern nine both Italian and non-EU brokers.
Among these was a public official who on two occasions used
his company car to deliver the sums collected to the fraud manager.
The investigations also revealed the involvement of a retired prefectural official who, upon payment of sums of money, would have made available the network of knowledge he had to obtain information on migratory practices and overcome any problems relating to the issuing of authorizations.
The former prefectural official was banned from staying in the province
of Foggia.
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