Who would have thought it? People from the criminal gangs, in particular the Italian mafia, turned out to be the most active investors in starting up and developing the eco-friendly energy. Referring to the investigation data of the Europol, partakers of Cosa Nostra from Sicily, Camorra from Naples, 'Ndrangheta from Calabria, and Sacra Corona Unita from Apulia have been pouring huge sums into the clean-tech clusters. In that way, they get not only a means for money laundering, but also an extra income as aid grants from the EU for promoting green energy supplies.
The Italian police have already detained businessmen having direct ties with the mafia. In 2012, an Italian wind farm was seized; it was the largest wind farm in Europe for the time being. The authorities exempted property and assets in the amount of €350 million, belonging to the criminal group 'Ndrangheta, as it was brought to light in the course of the investigation.
A year later, in April 2013, the possessions and cash assets worth €1.3 billion were seized from Vito Nicastri, a Sicilian businessman. Nicastri was running about 50 companies dealing with green energy development. He also possessed 98 real estate items. Besides, 60 bank accounts were suspended. Vito Nicastri was suspected of having close links with the mafia. The seizure of his property has become the record sting in the history of freezing assets owned by a single person.
