Reports from La Repubblica emerged today that the Naples public prosecutor’s office has opened an inquiry into tax evasion and false invoicing in Italian football.
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Italian police seized assets on Tuesday from football players, agents and club executives as part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion in the country’s top two divisions.
Officials based in Naples were seizing cash, stocks and property worth more than 12 million euros, city prosecutor Vincenzo Piscitelli said in a statement.
As well as Galliani, Lazio’s Claudio Lotito and Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis are also reportedly under investigation.
A series of raids were carried out by Italy’s “Guardia di Finanza” – an armed police force usually charged with investigating financial and drugs crimes – early on Tuesday morning.
Crespo, a former Argentina global who spent most of his career in Serie A and who is now coach of Serie B side Modena, and PSG striker Lavezzi, an Argentina worldwide, have also been implicated, say the reports. A spokesman for Lazio said he was not aware of any probe.
Milan and Napoli declined to comment.
The money paid to the agents was allegedly passed on to the players in turn as a fringe benefit for the soccer stars, free of taxes and social security contributions.
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Allegations of tax fraud made against Adriano Galliani have been labelled “absolutely marginal and not founded” by AC Milan.
