Translated automatically by AI from the Italian original.
AGRIGENTO – A judicial earthquake has shaken the political and bureaucratic landscape of the City of Temples. The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Agrigento, led by prosecutor Giovanni Di Leo, has given a decisive push to the investigation into the alleged “crazy spending” tied to the management of major events, Christmas programmes and cultural funds disbursed in recent years.
The Carabinieri have served a new summons on national MP Lillo Pisano, for whom the Agrigento judiciary has requested the most severe precautionary measure: custody in prison. The parliamentarian will appear on Saturday before the preliminary investigations judge Michele Dubini to undergo a cautionary hearing, assisted by his lawyers Silvio Miceli and Mattia Caleca.
New suspects across politics and bureaucracy: Ciulla, Librizzi and Insalaco emerge
The investigation – launched about seven months ago – is snowballing, drawing in leading figures from local and regional administration. The new strand of the inquiry involves three additional suspects:
- Costantino Ciulla: former member of the municipal executive responsible for culture of the Municipality of Agrigento and current opposition municipal councillor for Fratelli d’Italia;
- Giuseppe Librizzi: director of the Region of Sicily’s tourism department, for whom the Public Prosecutor’s Office has requested disqualification measures (officially represented by lawyer Vita Marino);
- Antonino Insalaco: director of the Municipality of Agrigento, also the subject of a request for disqualification measures (represented by lawyer Francesco Messina).
The charges brought by the Agrigento public prosecutors outline a complex picture: criminal association, embezzlement, aggravated fraud against the Region of Sicily and the Municipality of Agrigento, ideological forgery and illegal campaign financing for a national election candidate (referring to Lillo Pisano himself).
The fund-multiplication scheme and the Achille Lauro case
At the heart of the Carabinieri’s findings are the public grants allocated for promotional events and 2022 Christmas festivities. According to the prosecutors’ case, a system was devised to artificially triple the actual costs of events.
The emblematic case is the “big concert” by artist Achille Lauro, which, according to the prosecutors’ reconstruction, ended up costing three times its market value. Three main events have come under scrutiny – Xena Akragantos, Natale destinazione Agrigento and Destinazione Agrigento Costa del Mito – which, despite belonging to a single, identical programme, are alleged to have secured separate and cumulative funding totalling €602,000.
The full map of ten suspects
The three new figures join the seven individuals already entered in the register of suspects in the first strand of the investigation:
- Fabrizio La Gaipa: former manager of the Valle dei Templi Tourist District;
- Salvatore Prestia: former director general of the Teatro Pirandello Foundation;
- Calogero Casucci: member of a cultural association close to MP Pisano;
- Antonio Migliaccio: former driver for MP Pisano and legal representative of an association that received funds;
- Laura Cozzo: Prestia’s wife and legal representative of another association that received funding;
- Lillo Pisano (national MP);
- Costantino Ciulla (municipal councillor and former member of the municipal executive);
- Giuseppe Librizzi (director, Region of Sicily tourism department);
- Antonino Insalaco (director, Municipality of Agrigento);
- one further association contact already caught up in the first strand.
Faced with the charges of fraud and embezzlement, MP Lillo Pisano has reiterated his position: “I am completely unconnected to the alleged facts and I will clarify every aspect before the judge during the hearing.”
