Italian authorities have seized more than €25 million ($27.98 million) in assets from five former employees of a gaming concessionaire as part of an investigation into alleged fraud involving Gratta e Vinci scratchcards. The Guardia di Finanza conducted the investigation this week. The concessionaire has not been accused of wrongdoing.
Prosecutors allege the former employees used privileged access to identify winning tickets before they reached the public, circumventing the game’s intended randomness. The suspects face multiple charges linked to the alleged scheme.
Winning tickets allegedly identified in advance
The five former employees are alleged to have identified four winning scratchcards before distribution. Two reportedly carried prizes of €7 million each, while the other two were worth €5 million apiece.
Investigators allege the suspects used confidential credentials to access and manipulate the gaming company’s servers, enabling them to inspect or alter data and pinpoint winning tickets before retail sale.
The alleged arrangement also involved friends and relatives buying the identified tickets from retail outlets in different parts of Italy. Investigators say this approach was intended to conceal the tickets’ alleged fraudulent origin and make them harder to trace.
Seized assets and ongoing investigations
The Guardia di Finanza said the seizure was intended to protect public finances by recovering assets connected to the alleged damage caused by the fraud. The assets include 25 properties, numerous vehicles and various financial holdings linked to the suspects.
A court is expected to decide whether to uphold, change or lift the seizures. The measure is intended to secure potential restitution for financial damage attributed to the Italian Revenue Agency while criminal and accounting investigations continue.
The case comes amid concerns about Italy’s gambling regulation. In June, trade body EGP-FIPE warned the Senate that the sector was in a “regulatory deadlock” that could expand unregulated gambling. It said the lack of a cohesive national reform framework had left the sector “frozen”, hindering network planning and weakening measures to protect against problem gambling.
