Michele Emiliano knew that the investigations on Alfonso Pisicchio “had regained momentum”? The question about the suspicious timing which last April 10th saw the governor’s former right-hand man leave his position as commissioner of the Arti agency and then end up, in the evening, under house arrest on charges of corruption, arises again after the words pronounced by Pisicchio in the guarantee interrogation. Meanwhile, the member of the anti-mafia commission, Senator Raffaella Paita of Italia Viva, intends to ask for theaudition of president Michele Emiliano.
The alleged leak
Now, an investigation is open into the alleged leak but Michele Emiliano is not under investigation. The former regional councilor for urban planning showed a chat on Whatsapp between him and Emiliano: the governor would have warned him that the investigations against him, already active since 2020, would have a “momentum”. Pisicchio replies: «Can we talk about it?». Emiliano’s response is categorical: “Either you resign or I revoke you.” And so, around lunchtime on that noir-tinged Wednesday 10th April, the regional president takes away the delegation from Pisicchio.
The third name
But a third name also emerges from the chats, perhaps that of the person who allegedly warned President Emiliano. Name that could only be known in a few weeks, when the prosecutor’s office will be able to analyze the data (and messages) from Pisicchio’s smartphone.
A few hours pass and, around 7pm, the financial police execute the precautionary custody order of investigating judge Ilaria Casu. Just a coincidence? The former councilor ends up under house arrest together with his brother as part of an investigation started in 2020 into alleged corruption relating to tenders when Alfonsino was in the regional council. The storm breaks out and not only due to the extent of the precautionary measures that add fire to the political scandals of Bari. But precisely because of the chronology of events. The first to come into the political and media spotlight is Pisicchio’s former lawyer Michele Laforgia, candidate for mayor of part of the centre-left, suspected of having spoken about the imminent ordinance to Emiliano. The criminal lawyer denies it. «Laforgia stated precisely the day after the controversy that I did not know and could not know anything about the custodial order also applied against Alfonso Pisicchio, by whom I had been appointed defender following a search carried out way back in July 2020. How is it known, the law does not allow defenders to access information covered by the secrecy of the investigation, much less to become aware, in advance, of the adoption and imminent execution of a precautionary measure”.
Emiliano, the day after, is also required to offer his explanation. «Pisicchio told me that the investigation against him had been closed. When I asked him for the device and he didn’t hand it over, I revoked it.”
According to Emiliano, therefore, it is only a coincidence that this request of his, many years after the news of the opening of the investigation, arrived a few hours before the arrest. For days there was silence on the matter. Then yesterday Pisicchio’s words emerged before the investigating judge. Indeed, the chat that seems to show Emiliano’s knowledge of the arrival of the ordinance. An exchange of messages that is under the scrutiny of investigators. The leak is hypothesized which, according to some rumors, may have escaped from “Roman sources”.
In the meantime, the chat, which enriches the climate of suspicion, ends up in political fuss. The first attack, yesterday morning, was launched by Matteo Renzi: «From the news it appears that President Emiliano was aware of a criminal investigation against Pisicchio. And from what we read Emiliano suddenly said to Pisicchio: resign or I’ll kick you out. If the facts are true, it is a double scandal.” The president of the Forza Italia senators Maurizio Gasparri also spoke on the matter and asked: «Did Emiliano know about the Pisicchio case? Using confidential information is a crime, is he under investigation?”. With him also the vice-president of the Anti-Mafia commission, Mauro D’Attis (Fi) who speaks of «a system of power in Bari to which everything is granted, using confidential information is a crime, but here it seems normal». Meanwhile, Pisicchio’s lawyer, Salvatore D’Aluiso, believes the precautionary measure of house arrest is “non-existent”. Therefore he will appeal to the Court of Review. But in the meantime attention shifts to the suspicion of a leak.
Anti-Mafia Commission
«I will ask, in the presidential office of the anti-mafia commission next Tuesday, the timetable for a rapid summons of the president of the Puglia Region, Michele Emiliano: this becomes even more urgent after what has emerged in the last few hours. This is a request that is being renewed, also because there were already intentions to schedule Emiliano’s hearing regarding the events linked to the risks of mafia infiltration in the municipality of Bari”. Thus the senator of Italia Viva and member of the anti-mafia commission, Raffaella Paita, regarding the matter of the resignation of the former extraordinary commissioner of the regional innovation agency of Puglia, Alfonso Pisicchio, now under house arrest on charges of corruption and fraud. According to what we understand, other members of the commission also agree on the request for an urgent summons from Emiliano.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Read the full article at
Puglia Newspaper
Tags: pops Hearing governor requested antimafia commission
