Preliminary custody order against 31 suspects, including public officials – belonging to the Army and Air Force with varying degrees – and entrepreneurs accused of fraud in supplies, corruption and auction disruption in procurement contracts for the Armed Forces.
Judicial storm on the Army and Air Force.
An air force inspector general, an air force colonel, on duty at Pratica di Mare airport, and a brigadier of the Guardia di Finanza under house arrest as well as two colonels, a lieutenant and a brigadier general of the air force suspended from the service.
It is the result of the operation conducted by the state police, coordinated by the deputy prosecutor Paolo Ielo and by the prosecutor Antonio Clemente, who unveiled a system of bribes and corruption in the procurement contracts for supplies to the Army, Carabinieri, Air Force and Guardia di Finanza for a total value of 18.5 million euros.
Here are all the details.
The policemen of the Flying Squad, coordinated by the Rome Public Prosecutor’s Office, carried out a precautionary custody order issued by the investigating judge at the court of Rome, against 31 suspects, including public officials – belonging to the Armed Forces with different degrees – and entrepreneurs, accused, among other things, of fraud in supplies, corruption, auction disruption and more in procurement contracts for the Armed Forces.
The ordinance provides for house arrest for 7 suspects, 5 disqualification measures for suspension from the exercise of the public office, as well as 19 measures of temporary prohibition to contract with the Public Administration and to exercise entrepreneurial activities and management offices of legal persons and companies.
The investigations, which lasted almost a year, initially revealed episodes of contractual fraud against the contracting state administrations by the companies awarded the production of the new rank badges for the Armed Forces, as part of the reorganization of roles and careers provided for by legislative decree number 94 of 2017 which introduced new top management qualifications.
In the continuation of the investigative activity, what according to the investigators was a specific and well-tested corruption system between entrepreneurs and officials, reconstructed thanks to the telephone, environmental and telematic interception activities supported by observation and shadowing services of some subjects repeatedly involved in episodes of corruption and troubled freedom of enchantments in various sectors.
In the first section of the investigation, the companies awarded the supply of the new rank badges for the uniforms of the Armed Forces used, according to the accusation, a system based on the establishment of a “cartel” agreed towards a single purpose, namely that of not to compete, or a post-award agreement in favor of whoever would then actually produce the material.
In the second part of the investigations, autonomous and distinct criminal episodes committed by officers of the Air Force were ascertained, according to the magistrates in a condition of stable subservience to private interests.
A contractual fraud was also established in the supply of modular tents with pneumatic structure for the Italian Army and in particular the troops on missions abroad through an “open tender” for a total amount of 9,064,335.57 EUR.
Overall, the investigations concerned auction disturbances and fraud in the tenders of the Armed Forces for a value of 18 and a half million euros. A decree of preventive seizure was ordered as a matter of urgency of the sums of money paid to senior officers of the Armed forces for the crime of corruption.
A fraud in the supply of tents for the Italian Army was also ascertained during the investigation of the Rome Flying Squad into alleged fraud in the contracts of the Armed Forces. In particular, this would involve the supply of modular tents with pneumatic structure for troops on missions abroad through an “open tender” for a total amount of approximately 9 million euros.
“The boxes, those of frogs … they have ‘Made in China’ outside … but if we put a label on the outside
If you just remove the words ‘Made in China’ … we’ll cover it for you ok “. It is an interception cited in the order by the investigating judge of Rome, as part of the investigation into a round of bribes and corruption involving members of the Armed Forces, from which it emerges that the suspects were supplied in China but the goods had to be manufactured in Italy, writes Ansa: “The scam involved the supply of Velcro grades to be pinned on the uniform of the Carabinieri and Guardia di Finanza (which were produced in Shenzen), the metal grades, the so-called ‘tubulars’ and also a supply of hats for the Alpine troops “.
+++ EXTRACT FROM AN ARTICLE BY THE MESSENGER
Under house arrest are Gennaro Cuciniello, a retired Air Force general, “head and organizer” – claims the prosecutor – of an association formed by him, by his right hand, Colonel Natale Antonio Palmieri, known as Luparetta, and by a series of friends entrepreneurs. Cuciniello would carry on business even after retirement. House arrest were also arranged for Brigadier Vincenzo Borreca. And the measure was also taken for entrepreneurs Luigi Boinsegna, Emilia Branciani, Claudio Montingelli, Fabio Piedimonte. The suspension from the public office was instead arranged for Melchiorre Giancone, colonel of the Army, Alberico Marcocci, assistant of the Forensic Institute of the Air Force, Giuseppe Midili, brigadier general, Michele Minenna, colonel and director of the commissariat of Guidonia, Simone Orro ,
