Riace Mayor Domenico Lucano has
been released from house arrest imposed over allegations he was
aided illegal immigration and left the southern town early on
Wednesday to comply with an court order banning him from staying
there, sources said.
However, Lucano's partner, who is under investigation for the
same allegations regarding involvement in marriages of
convenience to obtain resident permits, is staying in Riace.
She has been ordered to regularly sign in with the
authorities.
Central government is set to scrap the 'SPRAR' projects to
help migrants in Riace, citing alleged "serious anomalies".
The government has been accused of dismantling the Riace
model, which saw migrants help revive the small town in Calabria
whose population was dwindling, by several critics.
On Tuesday Lucano said that he was ready to continue the
southern town's widely lauded model to integrate migrants
without public money.
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