Italy tourism minister to stand trial in alleged fraud case
Italy tourism minister to stand trial in alleged fraud case, Daniela Santanchè, was ordered to stand trial by a Milan judge on Friday
In March, Santanchè is scheduled to go on trial.
Italy’s tourism minister, Daniela Santanchè,
Was ordered to stand trial by a Milan judge on Friday for alleged accounting fraud at her former publishing company.
Santanchè, a well-known figure in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing Fratelli d’Italia party
is accused of knowing about the company’s purported financial statement fraud along with 15 other people.
The minister’s sister Fiorella Garnero, her niece Silvia Garnero
her former partner Canio Mazzaro and her partner Dimitri Kunz are among the 16 individuals who have been ordered to stand trial.
According to news agency ANSA,
prosecutors claim that the financial statements were falsified between 2016 and 2022 in order to conceal losses of millions of euros and allow the company to continue operating.
Santanchè, sixty-three, sold her interest in Visibilia before to being appointed Minister of Tourism almost two years ago, and has denied any misconduct.
The trial has been set for March 20 in Milan.
“That we expected but that leaves a bitter taste in our mouths” is how Santanchè’s attorney, Nicolò Pelanda, described the decision on Friday. He also stated that his client’s innocence would be proven in court.
Italy tourism minister to stand trial in alleged fraud case
Following the acquittal of transport minister and deputy premier Matteo Salvini last month in a protracted case involving his refusal to allow a migrant rescue boat to land in Italy in 2019, Santanchè is the second member of Meloni’s cabinet to go on trial.
On Friday, opposition parties demanded that Santanchè step down;
However, the minister has consistently pledged to vindicate her name and has so far maintained the assistance of Meloni.
Santanchè told Corriere della Sera in an early Saturday piece that she was “very calm” about the court decision
which she had anticipated.
“Giorgia hasn’t called or contacted me, so I assume she has a lot of important things to do,
” Santanchè told the Corriere, adding, “I would definitely step back if my prime minister asked me to.”
Compiled by,
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