Italian financial police have dismantled an international tax fraud scheme worth an estimated €1.5 billion, denouncing more than 190 people and seizing over €7 million in assets, authorities said on Wednesday.
The Guardia di Finanza operation, codenamed "China Express," implicated roughly 200 companies managed by 22 entrepreneurs across 14 Italian regions. Investigators said €120 million has been recovered for taxation and 105 tax registrations were shut down. Among the seized items were luxury jewellery, handbags, watches and an apartment in Milan's Bosco Verticale residential towers.
The investigation originated from a beauty salon in Albenga, near Savona, which had issued approximately €20 million in fake invoices to more than 200 companies, police said.