Among the alleged crimes: issue of invoices for non-existent operations and fraudulent declaration through the use of invoices for non-existent operations
The offices in Rome, Lazio and Salernitana were searched by the financiers of the Economic-Financial Police Unit of the Guardia di Finanza of Rome, at the disposal of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, to “acquire accounting and non-accounting documentation relating to the transfer of players”. The investigation concerning Rome refers to transfer market operations occurred between 2017 and 2021. The president of Lazio, Claudio, is under investigation lotthe sporting director of the Biancoceleste club, Igli Repelthe manager FabiansRoma President and Vice President Dan and Ryan Friedkin and former company president James Pallotta.
Rome situation – The Friedkins, Pallotta, Gandini, Baldissoni, Fienga and the managers Francesco Malknecht and Giorgio Francia are under investigation for false corporate communications in competition.
“In order to obtain an unfair profit for themselves or for others, in the balance sheets, reports or other corporate communications addressed to shareholders or the public – reads the search decree and notice of guarantee – they knowingly exposed material facts that did not correspond to the truth , or omitted relevant material facts whose communication is required by law on the economic, patrimonial or financial situation of the company or group to which it belongs, in a concrete way capable of misleading others”.
The current managing director Pietro Berardi, but also Gandini, Fienga and Baldissoni, is instead under investigation for the violation of article 2 of decree law 74/2000: fraudulent declaration through the use of invoices or other documents for non-existent transactions. “In order to evade income tax or on added value – write the magistrates – making use of invoices or other documents for (wholly or partially) non-existent operations” indicated “in one of the declarations (also supplementary)” relating to taxes, “fictitious passive elements relating to the operations” of buying and selling of football players Romafinally, under Legislative Decree 231/2001, the one on the administrative liability of companies is being investigated, “not having prepared, prior to the commission of the aforementioned crimes, organizational and management models suitable for preventing crimes of the same type as those that occurred, thus making it possible for the suspects to carry it out for the benefit of the company As Roma Spa’
Transfers in the sights – I am 11 players bought or sold by Roma who are cited in the investigation by the prosecutors of Piazzale Clodio on the sale of football players carried out by the club in the years from 2017 to 2021. In particular, the sales of Marquise e Frattesi to Sassuolo, of Tumminello at Atalanta, of Luca Pellegrini to Juve, of Go ahead, Clerks e diaby at Verona. As for purchases, the names are those of Defrel from Sassuolo, of Spinazzola from Juve, of Cristante from Atalanta and of Plums from Verona.
Lazio and Salernitana – In the case of Salernitana e Laziothe investigations concern transfer operations of 7 footballers between the two clubs that took place in the 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 sports seasons. The alleged crimes are issue of invoices for non-existent operations e fraudulent statement through the use of invoices for non-existent transactions, as well as false social communications.
For its part, the investigation by the prosecutor of Tivolias the chief prosecutor specifies in a note Francesco Menditto, concerns “SS Lazio Spa and US Salernitana 1919 srl” and the verification activity is not connected “with others carried out by other public prosecutors”. In the municipality on the outskirts of Rome the proceeding was initiated a few days ago and the crimes being prosecuted are “issuing invoices for non-existent transactions and fraudulent declaration through the use of invoices for non-existent transactions” as well as for “false corporate communications against some people who, as mentioned, must consider themselves innocent until a final conviction”.
Transfers in the sights – Suspicious transactions are those related to players Go crazy, Single house, Marino, Cicerelli, Novella, Morrone, Akpro bag. In particular, the indictment states that lotas Chairman of the Management Board of “SS Lazio SpA”, together with Marco Moschini as Managing Director, Marco Cavaliere, as Administrative Director and Igli Tare as Sports Director of the Company, “in competition with each other, making use of invoices sales of the players sold by US Salernitana, the result of artificial evaluations compared to the market value of the individual player at the time of the sale, indicated in the annual tax returns fictitious passive elements (“inflated” costs), as well as showing the respective disproportionate purchase values of the players, thus distorting the value of the assets of the sports club”.
The note from Lazio – “The SS Lazio is a crystal house in which all the documents are in place and always available to all the Authorities. In our work, we have always adhered to a perspective of loyal and total cooperation and, therefore, any documentation had been requested of us, it would have been immediately delivered by us. However, we have the utmost respect for the Judiciary and therefore we trust to quickly dispel any misunderstanding or doubt in relation to the disputed hypotheses”.
Finally, with regard to the searches carried out on the Us Salernitana 1919 “clarifies that the current shareholding structure is completely extraneous to the operations under investigation” and specifies that he has “extended the maximum cooperation to the investigative bodies” and that “it remains at their disposal”.