Fruit and Veg Mafia scam exposed in Palermo

Palermo’s Antimafia Investigations Directorate (DIA) has confiscated assets worth €150 million from a pair of brothers who for years orchestrated the infiltration of Palermo’s largest fruit and vegetable market. Angelo and Giuseppe Ingrassia exercised hidden control over the sale of fruit and vegetables in the market on Via Montepellegrino on behalf of the Galatolo clan, working through nominee directors. According to Palermo Today, the pair used the services of the cooperative Carovana Santa Rosalia to secretly control road transport of the agricultural goods to and from western Sicily and the main supply centres, manage internal trading activities, and fix the price of the products sold in the market, creating an illegal monopoly. ANSA reports that the police confiscated buildings, apartments, land, shops, and warehouses, as well as trucks, cars and motorcycles, company shares, and various banking and financial products.