The State Police of Palermo unearthed a vast round of bribes in the public procurement sector. Performed several precautionary measures against public officials and entrepreneurs
The State Police of Palermo, with the "Cuci e Scuci" operation, at the disposal of the Public Prosecutor of Palermo, executed an ordinance for the application of precautionary measures against 14 subjects who will have to respond, in various capacities , of crimes of corruption, false in public documents and frauds aggravated against the State.
The complex investigations were carried out by the police officers from the "Anti-corruption" section of the Palermo Flying Squad who collected numerous clues against various Public Officials working at the Interregional Board for Public Works based in Palermo.
It should be emphasized that, for the first time in Palermo and one of the first at the national level, the precautionary measure provides for the measure of the prohibition to contract with the Public Administration for months 12, recently introduced by the so-called "scrubber law" Law n. 3 of the 2019, borne by 8 entrepreneurs.
The investigative scope of the investigation mainly concerns public tenders financed with funds from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT), in particular for school construction, or other bodies or Ministries, allocated for ordinary or extraordinary maintenance of buildings in the State , used for institutional or public utility purposes.
The investigations conducted showed the delivery of bribes whose amount corresponded roughly to the 2-3% of the total amount of state financing.
The illicit modus adopted then allowed the entrepreneur to recover the amount of the bribe, through the insertion of items of fictitious or increased expenses in the accounting documents, prepared by the infidel officials, remaining in fact charged to the State.
The public contracts in question relate to 5 Schools located in the provinces of Palermo, Enna and Catania, a property confiscated from organized crime and destined for the Carabinieri for staff housing requirements and another property located in Capaci, destined for the new Carabinieri Station small town.