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20 December 2019The former regional councilor and former mayor of Amantea, in Calabria, Franco La Rupa and his son Antonio, were arrested by financiers of the Provincial Command of Cosenza for aggravated fraud for obtaining public financing, fraud in the exercise of commerce, fraudulent transfer of values, self-laundering, slander and attempted extortion.

The "white fly" operation
According to the findings of the investigations conducted by the financiers of the Compagnia di Paola and the Tenancy of Amantea, La Rupa, already definitively condemned by exchange vote with members of the Forastefano di Cassano allo Ionio, commercialized false organic oil obtained with chemical and phytosanitary products, he then reinvested the proceeds of the fraud for the purchase of a building subject to bankruptcy auction and to finance a reception center for immigrants.

The details of the fraud
According to what emerged from the investigations, father and son, both residents in the municipality of Amantea and owners of a farm, would have sold 41,860 kg of fake organic oil, actually obtained through the use of fertilizers and pesticides prohibited in this type of agricultural production.

Through false documents and hiding the purchase invoices of non-admitted chemicals that were systematically used in the fields, they were able to deceive the certifying body of the Ministry of Agricultural and Forestry Policies.

Not only that, they were always able to obtain from the Ministry, the release of the certificate of agro-biological operator, thanks to which they could place on the market the fake organic oil, obtaining a profit of more than 150,000 euros and receive contributions from the European Union and from the Calabria Region for an amount of approximately € 114,000.

The profit of the deception, according to the prosecution, was reused for the purchase of a real estate complex in the municipality of Serra d'Aiello in the province of Caserta, which took place in the context of a bankruptcy auction.

The seizures
The investigations allowed to bring back the de facto property both of the farm and of the buildings subsequently acquired to the former regional councilor, already struck in the past by an asset prevention measure. In particular, 50% of the building complex in the municipality of Serra d'Aiello was seized together with money and other assets of the suspects.