A judicial earthquake hit the Municipality of Venice. In an investigation into corruption, related to the sale of public areas and municipal buildings, the mayor of the city, Luigi Brugnaro, was investigated together with two officials of his cabinet, Morris Ceron, and Derek Donadini.
In the same investigation by the Guardia di Finanza, but in a different way, the city councilor for mobility Renato Boraso was arrested. Building contractor Fabrizio Ormenese is also in prison.
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ANSA Agency Who is Renato Boraso, councilor of the Municipality of Venice – News – Ansa.it (ANSA)7 other municipal and public officials came under house arrest, including the municipal transport company Actv. Six other suspects were banned from holding public office for 12 months. In total there are 18 suspects; they also include the general director of the Actv, Giovanni Seno, and the manager of the supply sector, Fabio Cacco. Storm, in proportion and political scope, second only to the investigation of the supply of MOSE, which prompted in 10 years 35 arrested in the lagoon.
In Boraso, former Forza Italia run under the banner of the ‘Brugnaro list’ and in Coraggio Italia – a movement founded by Brugnaro together with Giovanni Toti – the Venice Prosecutor’s Office charges 11 episodes of corruption, extortion and self-laundering from 2015 to the present day including the short sale of Palazzo Papadopoli, which is also linked to the mayor Luigi Brugnaro and his chief of staff Morris Ceron in another way. According to the indictment, it is alleged that Boraso, who was a Heritage Advisor at the time, delivered 73,200 euros to the emissaries of the Singaporean tycoon Chiat Kwong Ching, with invoices to his company “Stella consulting” for non-existent consultations, in 2017 and 2018 ; the figures were passed on to two other companies of his. “He systematically commented on his public function, while selling it to private interests”, says the investigating judge. And the mayor warns him: “You don’t listen to me, you don’t understand something… They are asking me if you ask for money, you don’t understand, you take too much risk. .. If I tell you to be careful, you need to check.”
For Brugnaro, Ceron and Donadini, the subject under investigation is the area of Pili, ie the entrepreneur bought ‘Umana’ when he was not yet in politics, for 5 million, then a development area, which Brugnaro had started negotiations (which later failed) again with Chiat Kwong Ching. Four and a half hectares of land, polluted by the work of Marghera, ended up under the control of ‘Porta di Venezia’, still in charge of Brugnaro, but with the “de facto manager” – writes the Prosecutor’s Office – the deputy chief executive. Municipal staff Derek Donadini. Since 2017, it has been in the hands of a New York legal blind trust created by the mayor to prevent allegations of conflict of interest. The mechanisms of the blind trust are what the Gdf is investigating. Brugnaro, Ceron and Donadini, it is written in the ordinance, “Ching agreed that a price of 150 million euros would be paid in exchange for the promise that the capacity of the building would be doubled and that the necessary urban planning variations would be accepted. to approve the construction project”.
Brugnaro says that he is “surprised” and adds: “I know that I have always done and continue to play the role of mayor as a service to the community, free of charge, always putting the interests of the community first”. And on Pili he states: “That’s an area that can already be built since my administration.”
However, according to the magistrates, the same Brugnaro, Ceron and Donadini, in a meeting in Venice” agreed with Ching la the sale of the municipal property Palazzo Papadopoli at a price of more than € 10,000,000, lower than the value of 14 million… and this is to facilitate negotiations with Ching regarding the sale of the land Pili, owned by Brugnaro “.
A decrease in the value of the property actually occurred, through “acts contrary to the official duties carried out by Brugnaro, Ceron and Donadini, who acted on behalf of the first person”.
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