Colombiagate, Leonardo’s audit of Profumo and D’Alema revealed by La Verità
Colombiagate, the results of Leonardo's audit emerge. According to the revelations of La Verità: "Leonardo's secret papers given to D'Alema", reveals the newspaper La Verità. All the details
The results of Leonardo's internal audit frame Massimo D'Alema and the former CEO, Alessandro Profumo, in the Colombiagate (unveiled in recent months by the newspaper La Verità ).
That is the case that emerged last year in which former premier D'Alema is the protagonist as mediator in the (unfinished) sale of 4 billion euros of military vehicles to Colombia by Fincantieri and Leonardo, with 80 million euros of possible and suggested commissions for brokers.
To date, Massimo D'Alema and Alessandro Profumo are among the eight people under investigation by the Naples Public Prosecutor's Office for alleged intermediation for the sale to Colombia of ships, submarines and military aircraft manufactured by Fincantieri and Leonardo.
On 6 June searches began against four suspects (including D'Alema and Profumo) as part of the investigations by the Neapolitan investigating office into the sale and purchase of ships and aircraft to Colombia.
"An internal audit ordered by Leonardo was acquired in the investigation documents and kept classified" Corriere della Sera wrote on June 7, specifying that "nothing has ever officially emerged regarding the results, but according to rumors a series of critical issues were identified related to company policy".
As soon as the story of the sale in Colombia exploded, the two companies involved, Leonardo and Fincantieri, owned by the Ministry of the Economy, had started internal audits.
“It should be specified that whoever carries out the audit does not have judicial police powers and must not prosecute crimes, but must verify whether internal procedures have been respected. In our case, the report contained a long series of observations on the non-compliance with the same" notes today Giacomo Amadori of the newspaper La Verità adding that "the conclusions of the audit are contained in a classified document with limited circulation, which, however, is now been acquired in the criminal investigation. Someone wrote that that relationship acquitted Baffino and in fact closed the internal investigations of Tarallucci and Vino. But is not so".
According to the newspaper directed by Maurizio Belpietro, Leonardo's internal audit reveals a complaint addressed to the top management: “they made papers with trade secrets available to the former prime minister. By omitting information on the discussed mediators chosen by D'Alema for the deal”.
All the details.
ONGOING INVESTIGATIONS
At the beginning of the week, at the behest of the Naples public prosecutor's office, the Neapolitan Digos carried out a series of searches in the Roman homes and offices of Alessandro Profumo (in his capacity as Leonardo's managing director at the time of the disputed events which date back to a date close to January 27, 2022), of the former prime minister Massimo D'Alema, of Giuseppe Giordo, former director of the Navi sector of Fincantieri and of Gherardo Gardo, in the capacity of D'Alema's accountant.
In addition to the four mentioned, Umberto Claudio Bonavita, Francesco Amato, Emanuele Caruso and Giancarlo Mazzotta are also under investigation in the investigation into the sale of ships and aircraft to Colombia.
The hypothesis of crime for all eight suspects is aggravated international corruption. The aggravated form is disputed by the suspects as the crime was allegedly committed with the help of an organized criminal group active in various states, including Italy, the USA, Colombia and also in others.
WHAT EMERGES FROM THE SECRET AUDIT, ACCORDING TO THE TRUTH
While the investigations are still ongoing, La Verità reports the results of Leonardo's internal audit according to which it emerges that "D'Alema had contacted the then CEO Alessandro Profumo directly and informed him that he had an interesting channel for the sale armaments in Colombia”.
WHAT ALESSANDRO PROFUMO HAD DECLARED IN THE HEARING IN THE SENATE COMMISSION
And so far it coincides with what was communicated by the then CEO of Leonardo Alessandro Profumo to the Senate Defense Commission during his hearing in the Senate in April 2022.
In the specific case, "President D'Alema, also in relation to his institutional history, suggested to Leonardo that these opportunities [sale to Colombia ed] could be more concrete but immediately clarified that he would remain completely extraneous to future intermediation activities” underlined Profumo.
"Based on this solution, the company has started the activities to verify the feasibility of these additional opportunities" highlighted Leonardo's former CEO. In the case of the negotiations with Colombia which involved the former prime minister Massimo D'Alema, "we have not arrived at the request for the contract", remarked Profumo.
If the sale has not actually been completed, according to the investigators, hypotheses of crime emerge in the negotiation.
THE ASSUMPTIONS OF CRIME
The suspects, according to the search order, allegedly "used in various capacities as promoters of the commercial economic initiative for the sale to the Government of Colombia of products of the Italian companies with public participation Leonardo (in particular M 346 aircraft) and Fincantieri (in particular particular corvettes, small submarines and shipyard preparation), in order to favor and obtain from the Colombian authorities the conclusion of formal and definitive agreements".
To achieve this, according to the Neapolitan prosecutors, the consultants Amato and Caruso "offered and in any case promised to other people, who performed functions and activities corresponding to those of public officials and public service officers in the political, administrative and military authorities of Colombia , the illicit consideration of the sum of 40 million euros, corresponding to 50% of the total commission of 80 million euros envisaged as a 'success fee', determined as 2% of the total value of 4 billion euros of the two contracts in question and to be reciprocated in an occult way”.
THE MANEUVER OF PERFUME
And it is precisely on the conduct of the negotiation that the audit results would frame D'Alema and Profumo, as reported by La Verità .
“D'Alema had no mandate, formal or informal, to negotiate on Leonardo's behalf” in Colombia, Profumo reiterated last year at the Senate Defense Commission.
However, according to the audit cited by La Verità , the then CEO of Leonardo Alessandro Profumo “ordered the then general manager Lucio Valerio Cioffi to send D'Alema documents concerning this order. A passage that would have taken place without due caution. In fact, these were classified documents for which no "non-disclosure agreement" (NDA) would have been signed by the recipients of the papers concerning military fighters and radar systems".
"It would have been essential to commit would-be buyers and their intermediaries not to disseminate sensitive information on matters of which they had become aware for commercial reasons, elements which had a certain confidentiality and which were confidential and which were, as mentioned, rigorously classified under corporate. But none of this was done and the precautions were not taken due to the personal relationship between Profumo and D'Alema” remarked the newspaper directed by Maurizio Belpietro.
THE MAIL FROM LEONARDO'S MANAGERS TO D'ALEMA
To corroborate this passage, La Verità mentions an email signed by a manager of Leonardo and addressed to Massimo D'Alema.
"Good evening President, sorry for the delay, I am sending you attached some brochures describing the solutions offered by Leonardo's electronics division for airport radars and air traffic control centres" wrote Dario M, of Leonardo's aircraft division, senior vice president of services on 1 December 2021 commercials & customers according to the truth .
Furthermore, the newspaper adds that in addition to the aforementioned brochures, "a detailed price list for 24 fighters" was also sent, together with brochures for four other products. In short, a "turnkey" airport was almost proposed alongside the fighters, points out La Verità .
LEONARDO'S OFFER PROPOSED TO COLOMBIA
According to La Verità “The M-346 business proposed by Leonardo to the Colombian authorities was a sort of global service. The package put in black and white in the 15-page document in fact provided for a fleet of 24 M-346 Fighter attack, associated logistic and integrated support and ground training system, the supply of infrastructure for training and maintenance centers. Leonardo also offered a 10-year "Turn key support" service carried out at the customer's air base in Colombia. Complete with a flight simulator and multimedia classrooms. Total cost, 2.132 billion euros”.
TRADE SECRET VIOLATION
So lots of commercial information sent by the company to D'Alema & Co.
“Corporate secrecy is linked to commercial matters, but requires the protection of certain news because if it comes out of the correct channels it can cause damage to society. This is why it would have been necessary to have an Nda signed. Which hasn't happened,” highlights The Truth .
But that's not all, because according to the newspaper the audit also reveals another illegal passage that took place at the company level in Piazza Monte Grappa.
NOT SHARING INFORMATION
"The lack of sharing with the competent structures of the information held by the top management and which would have guaranteed greater "compliance" and security was contested" reports La Verità.
“In fact, the intermediaries involved in the operation – specifies La Verità – had characteristics which, according to company policy, made them incompatible with Leonardo. For example, Giancarlo Mazzotta was involved in various judicial investigations and the Municipality, Carmiano, of which he was mayor, was dissolved due to mafia infiltration. But also the other two suspects, Emanuela Caruso and Francesco Amato, alleged advisers to the Colombian Foreign Ministry, did not have a curriculum vitae suited to the role. Not to mention the former paramilitaries involved in the deal in Bogota and in contact with the D'Alema boys: Edgardo Ignacio Fierro Florez and Oscar José Ospino Pacheco, both convicted of murder to very heavy sentences”.
"All checks that were not made possible by Profumo's failure to communicate this information to the security structure in charge of this type of activity" the newspaper points out again.
SUCCESS FEE PAID YES OR NO?
Finally, something doesn't even add up on the topic of success fees.
In the case of the negotiations with Colombia which involved the former prime minister Massimo D'Alema, "we have not arrived at the request for the contract", Profumo underlined in a hearing in the Senate.
"Instead, the company limited itself to proposing a pre-agreement with another of the suspects, the lawyer Umberto Bonavita, where it was expected that the "promoter" would be paid even in the event of failure of the operation" reports La Verità .
Furthermore, Leonardo's former number one had clarified that "on the subject of thresholds, percentages", linked to the negotiations for orders, they can also vary based on elements such as the opportunities to enter new markets. “These are 'success fees' – explained Profumo – which are paid only when the contract has been concluded and the payment has been disbursed, when the company has cashed in”. And "in the specific case, no contract has been signed, therefore the necessary condition has not occurred" concluded Profumo.
Another dissonant note from the results of the audit, since today La Verità concludes that "Leonardo should have disbursed an amount to compensate the Robert Allen Law of Miami, of which Boanvita was a part, for a hypothetical marketing report and for the expenses incurred for other activities. Pursuant to the contract, Robert Allen was in any case entitled to payment even in the event of termination of the agreement by Leonardo”.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/colombiagate-audit-di-leonardo-inchioda-profumo-e-dalema/ on Fri, 09 Jun 2023 11:59:54 +0000.