Catania court upholds seven-day suspension of betting shop authorisations
Enforcement & compliance1 min read
The Regional Administrative Court of Catania upheld a seven-day suspension of a betting collection point’s authorisations, imposed by the Questura under Article 100 of the TULPS. It rejected the owner’s appeal, finding that repeated police checks showed regular attendance by people with criminal records; the court also rejected a claim for lost revenue.
Catania’s regional administrative court has upheld a seven-day suspension of a betting shop’s authorisations, imposed by the local police authority under Article 100 of the TULPS. The court rejected the owner’s appeal against a prefectural decision that had confirmed the suspension.
The closure followed three police checks that found repeated attendance by people with criminal or police records, including for drug dealing and theft. The owner argued that their presence was occasional and insufficient to establish that the premises were a regular meeting place. The judges found that the repeated checks demonstrated a pattern of regular attendance.
The court said an Article 100 suspension is preventive and does not depend on establishing the operator’s responsibility, serving to protect public order and safety before dangerous situations arise. It found that the urgency of the measure justified not giving notice that proceedings had begun. The court rejected a claim for revenue lost during the closure and ordered each party to bear its own legal costs.