The soldiers of the Provincial Command of the Guardia di Finanza of Catania they performed a precautionary measure real order ordered by the Court of Catania, during the review, having as its object the preventive seizure, also for equivalent, of the total amount of €397,322.82equal to the profit from the crime of aggravated fraud committed by a well-known entrepreneur from Palagonia. The ablative provision, already ordered in 2023 by the investigating judge of the Court of Caltagirone, had been the subject of release from seizure following a formal appeal lodged by the suspect.
The seizure carried out by the Company’s financiers Caltagirone is the result of a complex investigative activity coordinated by the local Public Prosecutor’s Office, thanks to which the military discovered a complex fraudulent mechanism aimed at evading the legislation governing the so-called “Culture Bonus 18app”.
This benefit, granted by the Ministry of Culture, consists in the provision of vouchers with a value of €500 spendable by newly eighteen-year-olds for the purchase of goods or services aimed at promoting the development of culture and knowledge of cultural heritage.
The investigative activity carried out by the calatine yellow flames, also carried out through the examination of copious accounting documentation, would have brought to light the existence of an illicit agreement between the businessman hey young owners of vouchers, consisting of the possibility of purchasing goods other than those foreseen by the law.
In this way, the complicity between the parties would have allowed young people to purchase goods such as telephone products and tablets, with a purchase value higher than voucher awardedAnd to the entrepreneur to obtain the illicit advantage of reimbursementimmediate and total, of the nominal amount of the coupon, equal to 500 Eurosprovided by the Ministry of Culture.
The soldiers of the Guardia di Finanza of Caltagironethrough the testimonial evidence acquired from the users, they would have ascertained the involvement of around a thousand young people throughout the national territory, who became aware of the illicit stratagem through the so-called “word of mouth” system.
For these facts, the financiers, in the current phase of the proceedings in which the cross-examination between the parties has not yet been established, have referred the entrepreneur to the Calatina AG for the crime of aggravated fraud for the obtaining of public funds, while to each boy was charged with an administrative violation for the improper use of the voucher.
The profit of fraud consumed to damage of State, the subject of the ablative measure ordered by the AG, made it possible to seize real estate both owned by the entrepreneur and in his material possession, even through a third party. The timely investigations carried out by the financiers in the preliminary phase to the execution of the measure made it possible to link the suspect to the availability of real estate for both residential and commercial purposes, previously sold by the same for the sole purpose of avoiding a possible seizure.
The activity carried out by the yellow flames of the Provincial Command of Catania to protect public spending highlights the constant commitment made by the Corps in protecting the integrity of the national, regional and local budget.
