The Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia-Herzegovina today issued arrest warrants against seven people involved in the issuing of fake medical degree diplomas, which were then used in various countries, including Italy, Switzerland, Croatia, Serbia, Libya.
According to investigators, the organizer of these illicit activities is Salvatore Messina, an Italian citizen who is currently untraceable.
The restrictive measures came after a vast operation conducted since the early hours of this morning in various Bosnian locations by the Special Police Forces for the fight against corruption and organized crime (Sipa).
Numerous searches were carried out in Sarajevo, Gorazde, Zenica, Travnik, Konjic, among others.
The fake bachelor's degrees were allegedly obtained in a supposedly active international university in Gorazde.
Salvatore Messina is also under investigation in Italy for defrauding hundreds of students and promising degrees awarded by a supposed Italian-Bosnian university.
Messina is also accused of defrauding the EU by providing funds for training courses
Ghost university, class action ready in London
Over 50 students who enrolled at the Italian-Bosnian university, led by the president of the technical-scientific department of European studies Jean Monnet, Salvatore Messina, will present a class action before the London court where one of the companies in which the money paid by those enrolled in the courses.
The collective action is aimed at requesting compensation for the damage suffered by the young people who, not only have spent thousands of euros for degrees not recognized by the Ministry for Scientific Research, but have for years uselessly attended courses without any legal value.
The compensation action will be carried out by the lawyers Gabriele Giambrone and Mario Bellavista of the Giambrone & Partners law firm who in the next few days will also file a complaint with the Palermo Prosecutor's Office which has been investigating for months for fraud on the so-called Bosnia-Gate which sees Messina at the center .
Hundreds of people enrolled between 2022 and 2023, paying expensive annual fees - up to 20 thousand euros - for a degree in Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy, Veterinary Medicine, Physiotherapy and Speech Therapy, Podiatry, Orthoptics and Nursing.
Today the Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia-Herzegovina, which is also investigating the case, issued arrest warrants against seven people involved in the issuing of fake degree diplomas, which were then used in various countries, including Italy, Switzerland, Croatia, Serbia , Libya.
Messina is also among the recipients but cannot be found.
Some hospitals where the university guaranteed internships for students also ended up in the sights of the investigation by the Palermo Prosecutor's Office.
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