Real estate magnate Francesco Bellavista Caltagirone was indicted Tuesday along with 15 co-defendants on charges of conspiring to cheat public coffers out of 162 million euros in taxes.
Investigators say Bellavista Caltagirone used a galaxy of 50 corporations registered in the British Virgin Islands, the Dutch Antilles, Cyprus, France, Luxembourg, and Monaco to hide undeclared real estate and other assets for personal and family use.
The Finance Guard in March 2013 seized assets worth 145 million euros from the magnate, whose tax returns showed him owning no property at all.
The assets reportedly included a 71-meter yacht, a private jet, and luxury homes in Capri, the Cote d'Azur, Milan, Rome, and Venice.
The trial opens December 3.
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