On the morning of Wednesday, 22 January 2025, officers from the Provincial Command of the Guardia di Finanza in Parma (Italy) conducted a major judicial operation leading to the arrest of five individuals and the enforcement of personal precautionary measures issued by the Investigating Judge of the Parma Court. The operation, coordinated by the local Prosecutor's Office, aims to dismantle a criminal organisation dedicated to tax fraud within the pallet trading sector.
The investigation uncovered a complex and extensive scheme centred on the use of false invoices to legitimise non-existent transactions. Through a network of intermediary and shell companies, the organisation allegedly generated an illicit turnover estimated at approximately €20 million, inflicting a loss to the state treasury exceeding €4.6 million. This operation follows a preventive seizure decree executed in November 2024, which targeted assets and financial resources equivalent to the profit from the alleged tax offences.
The illegal mechanism identified by investigators revolves around a leading company based in the Parma province that operated on two fronts. On one side, it conducted legitimate business by purchasing used pallets from authorised suppliers for industrial recycling and resale. On the other, the group sourced pallets through a network of collection centres managed by intermediary companies, formally registered under frontmen. These centres acquired pallets off the books from hauliers, with payments made in cash.
The collection facilities, mainly located in Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, and Veneto, served as the core of the fraud. Despite periodic changes in the intermediary companies, these physical collection sites remained operational, leveraging a well-established network of suppliers and customers. The fraud was completed through the use of shell companies, created solely to issue false invoices that simulated the legitimacy of transactions. These invoices were crucial to justify the origin of the pallets sold to the leading company and to evade VAT through the reverse charge mechanism applicable to the sector.
The precautionary measures include pre-trial detention for one individual residing in the Parma province, house arrest for three individuals from the provinces of Parma, Forlì-Cesena, and Verona, and mandatory reporting to the authorities for a fifth person from the Pordenone province. These measures were adopted following preliminary interrogations conducted by the investigating judge, who deemed the precautionary needs necessary to prevent the recurrence of offences.
