Italian police arrested 20 people on Tuesday including former Telecom Italia managers and police officials as part of a Milan probe into illegal
wiretapping.
In Milan, police detained ex-army officer and former head of security at Telecom Italia, Luciano Tavaroli; and Pierguido Tezzi, the security manager at tyre group Pirelli, which is Telecom's largest shareholder. The owner of the Florence-based private investigation firm Polis d'Istinto, Manuele Cipriani, was arrested in Florence together with a Carabinieri officer, several policemen and tax police officers.
Arrests were also made in Prato and Turin, where a traffic policeman was seized.
The suspects are all accused of criminal association, corruption and divulging secret information. Sources close to the investigation said arrests and searches were carried out in Milan, Florence, Bologna, Prato, Turin, Novara and Como.
Magistrates also froze foreign bank accounts linked to Polis d'Istinto containing an estimated 13 million euros and impounded a Florence villa worth two million euros belonging to one of the suspects. Prosecutors believe private investigators working for Polis d'Istinto were gathering illegal information on certain unspecified individuals, including their police records and tax and banking details.
The investigation firm is also suspected of issuing false invoices and money laundering.
