It is "likely" that the brothers John, Lapo and Ginevra Elkann were aware of the "fraud" committed around the alleged evasion of inheritance tax upon the death of their grandmother, Marella Caracciolo. The Court of Review of Turin writes this in the reasons for the order with which the seizures ordered by the prosecutor's office as part of the investigation which revolves around the inheritance of Gianni Agnelli were confirmed. The passage, in particular, refers to the hypothesis of fraud against the State, which had been contested by the defence.
According to investigators, the tax should have been paid in Italy because Marella Caracciolo's residence in Switzerland was fictitious. "The fraud - the judges write - was likely the object of malice on the part of all three Elkann brothers, who were seen as having excellent relations with their grandmother and as knowing her habits and health problems which made her prevalent stay in Italy. Faced with the death of their relative, it is likely that they endorsed, with painful adhesive will, the strategies already suggested and implemented them with the effective advice of Gianluca Ferrero (the family accountant, also under investigation - ed.)".
The court hypothesizes that John had a more active role and that Lapo and Ginevra "limited themselves to a strengthening moral competition".
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