LAMEZIA TERME The Genoese investigation has brought to light some alleged events of electoral corruption which concerned one of the candidates on the list “Let’s change with Toti President” in the Ligurian regional elections of 21 and 22 September 2020, namely Domenico Cianci, investigated in the investigation by the Genoa Prosecutor’s Office which, this morning, led to the arrest of the president of the Liguria Region Giovanni Toti. Although no precautionary request was made against him – underlines the investigating judge – it is “one of the general events of electoral corruption”.
«(…) they consider this Cianci as an outsider… he told me that they consider this to be strong, they consider it to be strong… then you know they told me that many Calabrians… many things… are following him…”. The excerpt of the conversation reported by the investigating judge in the order has as its protagonists Italo Maurizio Testa – for whom the investigating judge ordered the precautionary measure of the obligation to reside in the municipality of Boltiere – and Venanzio Maurici – ordered for him the precautionary measure of the obligation to report daily to the police – intercepted on 18 September 2021. The excellent result election actually obtained by Cianci – 4,564 preferences, making him the third most voted candidate on the “Let’s change with Toti President” list in the district of Genoa – will be commented on 22 September 2021 again by Italo Maurizio Testa. “… do you know why? This brought out a lot of money… and then the Calabrians are very united, more united than us.”
As reported by the investigating judge in the order, after the electoral consultations some conversations were captured from which confirmation emerged «of Domenico Cianci’s contacts with the Calabrian environment and, in particular, with Luigi Mamone, originally from Cittanova and who died in May 2021″. As the investigating judge further notes in the ordinance, «since the 1980s the Mamones have created an important entrepreneurial reality in multiple sectors, including construction, earthmoving and excavation, industrial reclamation and waste disposal, in which they have acquired lucrative public contracts also obtained through the use of corrupt practices exercised against public officials and administrators aimed at disturbing the freedom of auctions to obtain the undue award of the works”. But to better understand the relationships between Cianci and the Mamone family, a conversation captured during the investigations of another criminal case still pending by the Genoa Prosecutor’s Office is significant. It is the morning of February 20, 2021 and the protagonists are Luigi Mamone (born ’36) and his nephew of the same name (born ’86), nephew of the former, with some precedents behind him but not investigated in this investigation. The two are in the car and, «driving along a stretch of road adjacent to the Genoa Fair, where work is underway on the new city Waterfront, they talk about public works, referring to the need to speak with Cianci if they want to obtain some jobs”. «(…) if we want jobs here in Genoa… we need to talk to Cianci… because here sometimes they do the jobs by private negotiation…».
In another meeting, however, inside his office, Mamone «was in the company of two Sicilian entrepreneurs», father and son, the investigating judge reports in the order «who complained about the fact that, as a consequence of the health emergency, they had a few low-value orders, mostly entrusted by some condominium administrator”. «Mamone asks: “…and Cianci?” arousing the reaction of one of the two Sicilian brothers who, considering him “a fake Calabrian”, explains that he “gave him the vote”, but that he did not receive any orders, as “he only works with the Albanians and that’s it”. And again: «(…) so rightly I went there to give him the vote… I, my mother, my father went… because I hadn’t voted for 5 years, Mr. Gino… 5 years since I hadn’t voted… we went… I also sent him the photo… I sent him the photo of the vote…”, the investigating judge continues in the order.
But – as reconstructed by the investigators – Cianci’s contacts with the Calabrian environment for the 2021 electoral consultations would also have emerged from some conversations held with Carmelo Griffo. As the investigating judge notes in the order «Griffo, born in 1955 and originally from Cerva, was suspected in 2005 and 2014 of belonging to the ‘ndrangheta gang of “Tratraculo” of Petronà, with ramifications in Northern Italy”. Furthermore, Griffo’s name also emerged in the 2016 investigation against the alleged Lavagna boss, arrested as part of the “Conti di Lavagna” operation of June 2016 and still detained. «Griffo – notes the investigating judge – was indicated as supporting him». The first “contacts” recorded by investigators between Cianci and Griffo date back to November 9, 2020, a conversation during which Carmelo Griffo, after introducing himself, asks him to meet him. «(…) We know each other because a friend of yours from Chiavari… sent me to you… at the time of the elections… the thirty thousand people you met… it doesn’t matter because you spoke to me in your office…” Griffo explains immediately in the phone call. And again: «(…) I committed myself to her… and quite a lot… I don’t even know if she lost or won the elections… I got you the twenty votes… I let you have them… I came to your office and you promised me, you promised me that you would make me… you promised me that… anyway I’ll go and talk to that friend who sent me to you, okay… you’re a clown, do you understand? You fucking clown!’ In the conversation he reports from the investigating judge in the order, «Cianci denies any favor «(…) eh… I helped when I can… now with Covid… I promised… I promised nothing to anyone… I tell everyone…”. ([email protected])
