As of: April 9, 2024, 4:58 a.m
By: Julian Mayr
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An international fraud scandal is currently affecting the Italian justice system. Right in the middle: a former athlete from South Tyrol and two Germans.
Bolzano - The more than 200 billion euros from the PNRR recovery and resilience plan should help crisis-hit Italy get back on its feet after the corona pandemic. However, the huge sums of money also offer tempting prospects for criminal organizations and fraud gangs. An international fraud network that swindled illegal sales of more than 600 million from the EU funding pot has now been stopped.
A total of 23 people clicked into handcuffs in Austria, Romania and Slovakia on Thursday morning (April 4th). Among those arrested, in addition to German citizens, is the former ski racer Alex Mair from South Tyrol, as several media reported. The 53-year-old is said to be the mastermind of the multi-million dollar fraud. He is presumed innocent.
Dozens of arrests after fraud involving millions in EU funding, including former South Tyrolean ski racers
The fraudsters are said to have cleverly used fake companies and fake contracts, as well as the use of advanced AI software, to accumulate assets amounting to several hundred million euros. According to
Corriere della Sera,
the responsible investigating judge, Mara Mattioli, speaks
of an “efficient structure” with shell companies, experts and willing advisors, as well as foreign accounts in which the stolen funds are said to have been parked.
The Italian financial police managed a coup against an organized gang of fraudsters on Thursday (April 4). The head of the group of crooks is said to have been a South Tyrolean ex-skier. (Symbolic image) © Manfred Segerer/Imago
In addition to the numerous arrests and the confiscation of other assets such as expensive luxury accommodation, sports cars, gold and jewelry, the alleged leader of the network was also arrested in the Slovakian capital Bratislava. The former skier Alex Mair, a native of Gossensaß, a town a few kilometers south of the Brenner, is said to have acted as the head of the fraud gang, as the
Corriere della Sera
writes , among others
. After a mixed sporting career, it wouldn't be his first conflict with the law.
Mastermind from South Tyrol previously convicted of fraud and money laundering
Mair ended his ski career in the mid-90s. In 2007, he was arrested for the first time for suspected drug trafficking, writes the South Tyrolean news portal
salto.bz
. The second arrest followed in 2009. The 53-year-old is said to have been the mastermind of an international gang that traded luxury cars. Three years later, after pleading guilty in the case, he was found guilty of fraud and money laundering. According to
salto.bz
, another case against the ex-ski athlete is
currently pending.
As
Corriere della Sera
reports, Mair's partner is also said to have been arrested in Bratislava. The two are said to have been on vacation, the daily newspaper writes. However, Mair is not said to be the only person involved in the fraud with ties to Italy's northernmost province.
According to
salto.bz
, a German entrepreneur living in the municipality of Brenner and an entrepreneur from Bolzano were also placed under house arrest. The latter is also said to be the managing director of a company based in Stuttgart, according to the online portal. As
Fatto Quotidiano
reports, a German entrepreneur also appears to be among the suspects.
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People arrested so far may only be the beginning - further investigations are ongoing
However, the suspects arrested so far - for whom the presumption of innocence applies - may only be the tip of the iceberg. Thursday's (April 4) arrests could be followed by dozens more. As
Corriere della Sera
reports, investigations are currently underway against 50 other people who may have been involved in the fraud or had knowledge of it.
Fraudulent gangs are also lurking on the Internet. In the crypto sector, for example, criminals steal millions of euros online. Even on the booking platform booking.com, consumers are not immune to nasty scams.