The Court of Appeal of Sassari confirmed this morning the sentence of 6 years and 8 months in prison for Graziano Mesina , accused of the crimes of usury and extortion . Pierluigi Meloni , former director of a branch of Banco di Sardegna in Sassari, was sentenced to 5 years with him.
The Court, presided over by Judge Salvatore Marinaro, accepted the requests of the Attorney General Roberta Pischedda, who had requested the confirmation of the sentences imposed in the first instance on both defendants.
THE FACTS - The facts for which Mesina (defended by the lawyers Maria Luisa Vernier and Beatrice Goddi) and Meloni (assisted by Agostinangelo Marras) were sentenced, date back to 2011 , when the Sassari entrepreneur Marco Milia, manager of Robur Basket, asked the branch of the Banco di Sardegna in via 4 Novembre a loan of 40 thousand euros for registration in the national championship of the basketball team. The director of the branch, instead of granting him the bank loan, directed him to Mesina , acting as an intermediary.
Milia concluded the negotiation with Grazianeddu but was then forced, also undergoing threats, to return 50,000 euros in place of the 40,000 received.
Mesina , who attended today's hearing by videoconference from the Nuorese prison of Badu e 'Carros , has always professed to be innocent .
"Never granted loans to usury - he had declared in the various levels of judgment - never took a penny more than what I had given".
(Unioneonline / vl)
