(Jamma) The Guardia di Finanza cracks down on illegal online betting in Palermo. Nineteen telematic stations connected to foreign sites were seized by the military at three city arcades without the authorization issued by the Autonomous Administration of state monopolies. 7 slot machines were also criminally seized and 5 video games that did not meet the characteristics required by current legislation administratively, with the application of administrative fines of 48.000 euros. The financiers have recovered numerous receipts for bets on unauthorized sites, which have made it possible to confirm the illegal collection of bets and which will allow, after the necessary investigations, to quantify the taxes evaded to the tax authorities. Furthermore, in one of the three establishments, the Fiamme Gialle also found evident tampering with the electricity meter and the Enel technicians, who intervened on the spot, ascertained that the device recorded only about 36% of real consumption, allowing a huge cost 'savings' for the energy consumed in the room. The complaint to the Public Prosecutor's Office of Palermo by the three owners of the amusement arcades, all from Palermo, was therefore triggered. The premises were all seized as a preventive measure, also in order to avoid the prosecution of the crime. The soldiers of the tax police unit of the Guardia di Finanza have also affixed the seals to a fourth agency, managed by an Italian company headed by a Liberian and located inside a two-story building in the center. After numerous stakeouts and inspections in the vicinity of the agency, the financiers searched the entire area seizing, in addition to the property intended for the illegal activity, of considerable commercial value, conspicuous IT and telematic material ' including 10 telematic stations, over 116 monitors, 7 televisions, numerous printers and equipment used for collecting bets - for a value of around 200.000 euros, in addition to cash for over 500 euros (equal to the daily collection of bets received), numerous tickets and various documents (including schedules of events on which it was possible to bet, with relative predictions) proving the effective illegal performance of the gaming activity. In fact, during the intervention it emerged that the center, apparently legal, carried out the collection, acceptance and management of sports bets on behalf of a foreign agency not recognized in Italy and operating in the absence of a public security license and of the concession of Monopolies necessary to operate in the sports betting sector. The manager of the agency was reported on charges of abusive exercise of the collection of sports bets. The examination of the correspondence seized at the agency's premises also made it possible to ascertain that, in just one week, sports bets had been collected for over 2.500 euros and winnings of almost 1.000 euros had been paid, obviously in total tax evasion .
