The investigation concerns tax fraud in the trade of IT products and electronic devices in the EU and involves around 400 companies with 200 suspects.
A large-scale criminal conspiracy to evade VAT due to money laundering and mafia activities has been investigated in several European countries. Reuters reported this in relation to data from the EU prosecutor’s office and the Italian police.
It was mentioned that 43 people were arrested across Europe. 520 million euros were also seized.
The investigation concerns tax fraud in the trade of IT products and electronic devices in the EU and covers approximately 400 companies out of 200 suspects, mainly in Italy and several European countries, as well as in the United Arab Emirates.
According to European prosecutors, those arrested were also charged with helping the Neapolitan mafia Camorra and the Sicilian Cosa Nostra by investing their income in VAT fraud.
Of the 43 arrested, 34 are in jail, nine are under house arrest, and four others are prohibited from working. Some of the arrests were made in the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Spain and Bulgaria.
According to the Italian police, fake invoices were discovered to have been issued by the companies involved worth 1.3 billion euros between 2020 and 2023. Real estate complexes on the Sicilian and Ligurian Rivieras, on Lake Como and in Milan were also seized .
In total, more than 160 searches were carried out across Italy, with subsequent searches and seizures taking place in Spain, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Cyprus and the Netherlands, as well as in Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates.
Recall that in Italy, approximately 60 people were arrested as a result of the raid against the ‘Ndrangheta mafia. The arrests took place in the southern Italian region of Calabria, where 50 people were detained and nine were placed under house arrest.
It has also been reported that a network of mafia-controlled counterfeiters has been dismantled in Italy.
Source: korrespondent
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