Italy's Supreme Court of Cassation has
confirmed the acquittal of the parents of centrist Italia Viva
(IV) leader and former centre-left Democratic Party (PD) leader
and premier Matteo Renzi for alleged false invoicing.
On Friday the judges rejected an appeal by the Florence Public
Prosecutor's Office against an October 18, 2022 appeal court
ruling clearing Laura Bovoli and Tiziano Renzi of the
allegations relating to invoices issued by the Renzis' two
events companies in 2015.
On that occasion, the appeal court overturned an earlier
conviction against the couple, ruling that "the action does not
constitute a crime".
Instead it upheld the conviction of Puglia-born 'outlet king'
Luigi Dagostino but cut his prison term to nine months, a
suspended sentence.
In the first-instance trial in October 2019 the Renzis got a
suspended sentence of one year and nine months in jail, while
Dagostino got two years, since he was also found guilty of
aggravated fraud.
The Supreme Court has instead sent the case against Dagostini
back to the Florence appeal court for a second appeal.
The "decision by the Court of Cassation ends a trial, the one
against my parents, that should never have been opened," said
Renzi in a statement after the sentence.
"Only the stubborn and ideological obstinacy of the public
prosecutor's office in Florence forced the Italian State to
spend hundreds of thousands of euro of taxpayers' money on a
case that was legally non-existent.
"There is no compensation for the suffering of the whole family
over these years," added the IV leader..
However, "the definitive acquittal demonstrates, once again,
that fighting in court and affirming the truth is the most
serious way to respect the institutions against those who use
some prosecutors' offices as a political weapon against their
adversaries," concluded Renzi.
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