A new Sardinian branch of the Genoa Prosecutor's Office investigation known as "Traghettopoli" (Traghetto-Polish). Prosecutor Walter Cutugno has signed a notice for non-repeatable technical investigations (IT consulting on email accounts and databases) addressed to 123 individuals and three companies (Moby, Cin, and Toremar), with additional suspects compared to the first round of registrations. This is the result of investigations into the email accounts of fourteen shipping company executives. The case concerns alleged "favors" by the companies of shipowner Vincenzo Onorato (also under investigation) to public officials, military personnel, politicians, and customs officials. Specifically, the matter concerns free tickets for Moby Group ships.
The new suspects
Among those newly registered as suspects at the Genoa Public Prosecutor's Office (the crime currently being charged is corruption in the exercise of one's duties) are Sardinian politicians, managers (both public and private), and military personnel (particularly Port Authority personnel). These include the mayor of Olbia, Settimo Nizzi, and the former president of the Sardinian Sea Port Authority, Massimo Deiana.
The investigation is still in its initial phase; on December 3, checks will begin that will allow the extraction of data from email accounts regarding the alleged ticket gifts. For Nizzi, the period involved is between 2019 and 2024, and for Deiana, between 2021 and 2024. It should be noted that there is still no proof of the exchange of favors. Some of the suspects (such as Massimo Deiana) have explained that they approached the companies not for undue benefits, but for a place on ferries during peak seasons. The databases will now verify how and when the Moby Group ferry tickets were obtained and whether they were paid for.
The military
The investigation also involves senior officials from the Port Authorities and the Guardia di Finanza, whose names had already emerged in the very early stages of the investigation. These officers served in Olbia and other important maritime departments, or are still operating in Sardinia. Ligurian prosecutors and judicial police are exercising the utmost caution in these positions; in several cases, these individuals have never performed official duties at the companies under investigation. Defense attorneys Luca Montella, Marzio Altana, Ivano Iai, Pietro Carzedda, and Pierfranco Tirotto have not yet commented.
Andrea Busia