Giovanni Toti, Liguria Governor, was put under house arrest on Tuesday in relation to a probe by finance police and the Genoa DDA anti-mafia directorate.
The centre-right regional president is accused of corruption, sources said.
The case regards alleged bribes to obtain favours, such as concessions at the Port of Genoa’s Rinfuse terminal.
Port logistics entrepreneur Aldo Spinelli was also put under house arrest. Meanwhile,Paolo Emilio Signorini, the CEO of energy group Iren and the former chairman of the Western Ligurian Sea Port Authority, was arrested and taken to prison.
Francesco Moncada, a member of the board of the Esselunga supermarket chain, is under investigation too.
Moncada has also been suspended from exercising entrepreneurial and professional activities, as has Spinelli’s Roberto Spinelli and Mauro Vianello, an entrepreneur operating in the Port of Genoa.
Arrested in Sanremo
According to Sky news, Toti was in a hotel in Sanremo when notified of his arrest. He was due to attend a press conference this morning.
Later, the GdF began a series of searches and acquisitions in Toti’s Genoese apartment, in the presence of the governor himself. Upon leaving, Toti told the journalists present “I can’t make any statements, you know that”.
His lawyer added, “My client is calm and intends to explain everything, he will continue to work. As we have been able to see up to this moment, these are all facts to which we can give an explanation in the context of a legitimate administration activity for the public interest”.
Toti was then taken to the Guardia di Finanza barracks on Lungomare Canepa, in Genoa. The Liguria Governor will remain under house arrest.
