Finance police on Wednesday arrested
five people on suspicion of vote-buying in Palermo municipal
elections and Sicilian regional elections in 2012.
The suspects, who include two Sicilian regional
councillors, a former MP and a finance guardsman, are accused of
receiving or promising money or jobs in exchange for votes.
Also on Wednesday, finance police searched the Sicilian
regional assembly and seized documents from the regional budget
committee chaired by Nino Dina, a councillor for the centrist
UDC party and one of the arrested suspects.
Also arrested was Giuseppe Bevilacqua, who ran
unsuccessfully for office in 2012 Palermo municipal elections
and subsequently "offered" the 1,000 votes - which he allegedly
obtained thanks to his Mafia connections - to Roberto Clemente,
a city councillor who was running in the regional elections.
Wiretaps revealed Clemente, who is also under arrest on
electoral corruption charges, agreed to make sure Bevilacqua
replaced him in office at the local level in exchange for the
votes - a deal he later reneged on.
Bevilacqua also "capitalized" on his position in a
charitable foundation by selling donated food destined for the
indigent.
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