Bari prosecutors seek trial of 102 over alleged clan-linked gaming halls

The Bari public prosecutor's office has requested that 102 people be sent to trial in an investigation into an alleged criminal organisation that, according to the accusation, helped the Diomede and Mercante mafia clans control gaming halls and video lotteries and used the businesses to launder money of illicit origin. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9 December in the Court of Assise in Bari.

According to the prosecution, the system also relied on the cooperation of a compliant accountant and involved people with criminal records, professionals and entrepreneurs from Bari, including the brothers Massimiliano, Alessandro and Antonio Snidar, owners of gaming halls that became the focus of the investigation. One of the main mechanisms contested concerned the buying and selling of winning tickets: tickets obtained regularly from other players were allegedly handed over in exchange for money and then registered to people belonging or close to the clans. The winnings were allegedly used to justify the possession of assets of illicit origin, making sums linked to criminal activity appear regular.

The accusations concern criminal association, money laundering, self-laundering and private violence, with the aggravating circumstance of mafia method, as well as embezzlement, fraudulent bankruptcy and tax offences. The investigation had already led to the arrest of 20 people in July.