Translated automatically by AI from the Italian original.
MANIACE (CATANIA) / NEWS & CRIME – A complex fraudulent scheme designed to siphon off EU funds earmarked for the agricultural and livestock sectors has been dismantled by the Carabinieri of the Agri-Food Protection Command – Messina Agri-Food Protection Unit. Following an investigation launched in March 2026 and coordinated by the competent judicial authority, the officers placed five people, aged between 28 and 68 and resident in the municipalities of Maniace, Sant’Agata di Militello and Melilli, under investigation, while simultaneously seizing 114 AGEA titles.
The individuals under investigation – who are presumed innocent until any final conviction – are accused, in various capacities, of aggravated fraud to obtain public funds, ideological falsification by a private individual in a public document and using money, goods or other assets from illicit sources in economic or financial activities.
[Image: Carabinieri Agri-Food Protection officers during a territorial control operation]
The mechanism of fictitious contracts and the €356,000 obtained
According to the investigators’ findings, the inquiry involved two companies operating in the agricultural and livestock sector in the province of Catania. The alleged scam centred on the false certification of the availability and management of agricultural land located in the territory of Melilli:
- Irregular documentation: some agricultural entrepreneurs are alleged to have signed fictitious lease agreements with complicit relatives, then used these documents to update their company files.
- Disbursement of funds: by deceiving the AGEA (Agency for Agricultural Payments), the individuals under investigation are said to have unduly obtained funding under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
- Amount defrauded: between the agricultural campaigns of 2019 and 2025, the scheme is alleged to have allowed the receipt of EU subsidies – funded through the FEAGA and FEASR funds – totalling €356,263.07.
Protecting the agricultural sector and fair competition
The intervention by the Carabinieri Agri-Food Protection Unit falls within the framework of surveillance activities to safeguard the EU budget and the proper allocation of resources intended for rural development. In a province such as Catania, where agriculture and livestock farming are essential economic pillars, the illegal diversion of EU funds not only causes serious damage to public finances but also undermines the principles of transparency and fair competition, penalising honest entrepreneurs who operate in full compliance with the rules.
