The financial police has notified 20 personal precautionary measures against entrepreneurs and public officials. The prosecutor and the investigating judge Naples: "Poor quality concrete, the money hidden in the panettone"
The Gdf of Naples has notified 20 personal precautionary measures against entrepreneurs and public officials as part of the investigations into the works for the construction of the Naples-Bari high-speed/high-capacity railway line. Corruption, gangmastering and issuing invoices for non-existent operations are the alleged crimes. At the request of prosecutor Henry John Woodcock, the investigating judge also ordered the preventive seizure of the profits from corruption crimes.
Overall, 10 house arrests were notified, 7 obligations to stay and report to the judicial police, in two cases accompanied by suspension from the exercise of public service, and three suspensions.
The works at the center of the investigation
At the center of the investigation, in particular, are the works connected to the Naples-Cancello, Apice-Hirpinia and Frasso Telesino-Telese-San Lorenzo-Vitulano sections. According to the reconstruction of the financiers and the Neapolitan Prosecutor's Office, accepted by the judge, a system of corrupt relationships emerged between entrepreneurs and public officials or those in charge of public services who, due to the technical, administrative and construction site responsibilities exercised, would have facilitated certain companies in obtaining orders, in the execution and accounting of the works, as well as in controls and payments. In exchange for the favors granted, money and other benefits would have been paid, including sums of cash, even hidden in Christmas packages and boxes, valuable watches, mobile phones, stays, holidays and other goods and services.
The bribes hidden in the panettone
Cash hidden in panettoni and biscuits in Christmas boxes, but also holidays, luxury cars and watches. These are some of the bribes that, according to the accusation, the entrepreneurs paid to public officials and public service providers in exchange for favors in contracts for the works on the Naples-Bari railway line. During an observation service during the Christmas holidays, the financiers of the Economic-Financial Police Unit of Naples found 10 thousand and 4 thousand euros in cash in two boxes, hidden among panettone and biscuits and intended for subjects involved in the management of the orders. Other disputed bribes include a transfer of 18,300 euros, used in part to pay for an apartment in Roccaraso, which would have been paid in exchange for preferential treatment in payments. In another episode, 5 thousand euros in cash were found in the possession of one of the subjects involved. Money would also have been hidden in packages delivered with packages of dairy products: on one the words "Durc - contribution regularity" had been affixed to conceal the contents. Other utilities include a Porsche Macan for a holiday, a €3,722 lawn tractor, hiring a family member, living rooms, an iPhone, Bluetooth headphones and a skippered boat. Among the Christmas gifts there are also valuable watches, five of which have a total value of 19,900 euros.
Concrete and excavated materials
Another area concerns the quality of the concrete used in the works. The core drilling carried out on works not yet completed would have shown, in some cases, resistance values lower than those foreseen by the project. On one occasion, values of 30, 29 and 32 N/mm² were detected, which led to the works being stopped.
The possible causes indicated in the investigations include the addition of water, the incorrect dosage of additives and anomalies in the preparation and transport of the concrete. According to the investigators, poor quality concrete was used for a stretch, a circumstance defined as extraordinarily serious by the investigating judge.
The investigations also concerned the management of excavation materials: materials in which traces of asbestos were present were allegedly disposed of as non-hazardous waste.
Finally, a system of invoices for non-existent operations would have been reconstructed, used to create availability of cash, part of which would then have also flowed into corrupt payments.
The gangmaster on the Grottaminarda construction site
A further line of investigation concerned the irregular employment and exploitation of non-EU workers. In particular, at the Grottaminarda construction site the presence of 34 Egyptian workers subjected to particularly onerous working conditions, with shifts of 10, 12, 14, 16 and up to 20 hours and, in some cases, just three or four hours of rest, was documented.
Salaries lower than the contractual minimums and violations of hygiene and safety provisions were also contested. Irregularities would also have emerged in the residence permits and in the documentation relating to safety training.
