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December 14, 2019Two Nigerian citizens had set up, in an ethnic grocery store in Ferrara, a veritable abusive 'bank' for collecting the savings of compatriots living in the Este territory.

The managers of the clandestine 'bank' were discovered by the financiers of the provincial command of the GdF of Ferrara who, during a search, found and seized cash for 70 thousand euros in various denominations, hidden among the furnishings of the store, hidden in plastic bags and divided by single 'saver customer'.

In addition to the large sum of money, the search brought to light a real accounting of savings management. The two Nigerians have been sued for abusive payment service activities.

Money flow surveys
The investigations began with the analysis of financial flows linked to numerous reports of suspicious transactions sent by the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), set up at the Bank of Italy, which aimed precisely at the two men: the investigations of the yellow Flames have recorded financial movements in favor of the two Nigerians, with payments of money on rechargeable credit cards registered to them and subsequent withdrawals. Investigations are underway to reconstruct the financial flows and determine both the real origin and the destination of the money.

The Hawala phenomenon
The collection of savings and the transfer of funds between Nigerian citizens through parallel channels is a phenomenon known as Hawala, a dangerous distortion of the banking system. According to the investigators, it is a tool strongly used to recycle capital of illicit origin, given the absolute lack of traceability of the movements.

A system based on the trust of the subjects in charge of the transfer of money and highly developed and used in the Middle East, North Africa, Horn of Africa and South Asia. The advantages for the managers of Hawala, the investigators add, are economic: the profits derive from the commissions and the exchange rates applied which very often are not the legal ones.