Italy's Guardia di Finanza (financial police) seized assets worth more than €25 million in Rome on October 23 from five former employees of the concessionaire company that runs the Gratta e Vinci instant-ticket lottery. They are suspected of identifying winning tickets in advance.
According to investigators, the suspects had privileged access to the company's systems. They allegedly used confidential credentials to log into servers, view or alter data, and locate winning tickets before those tickets went on sale. The prosecution argues that this undermined the randomness of the game.
Investigators point to four tickets: two worth €7 million each and two worth €5 million each. Relatives and acquaintances of the suspects reportedly bought them at various retail outlets across Italy. The aim, according to the case, was to conceal where the tickets came from and make them harder to trace.
Authorities froze 25 real estate properties, several cars and financial assets linked to the suspects. The Guardia di Finanza describes the measure as protection of public finances. It is meant to secure possible compensation for the damage attributed to the Italian tax authority while the criminal and financial investigations continue. The concessionaire company itself has not received any charges.
The court must decide whether to keep the seizure in place, modify it or lift it. The five former employees face several charges, but the specific accusations against them have not been disclosed.
The case comes at a difficult time for Italy's gambling market. In June, the industry association EGP-FIPE warned the Senate of a regulatory deadlock. Without a comprehensive national reform, it said, the sector is frozen and the illegal gambling market could grow.
