The mafia in Sicily is, apparently, trying to launder money through profitable green energy companies
ROME (Reuters) – Italy Tuesday seized Mafia-linked assets worth $1.9 billion — the biggest mob haul ever — in an operation revealing that the crime group was trying to “go green” by laundering money through alternative energy companies.
link: Italy seizes $1.9 billion of assets as Mafia goes green – Yahoo! News
It gets even better:
At the center of the investigation was Sicilian businessman Vito Nicastri, 54, a man known as the “Lord of the Wind” because of his vast holdings in alternative energy concerns, mostly wind farms.
link: Italy seizes $1.9 billion of assets as Mafia goes green – Yahoo! News
I argue that greenies will need to find a new platform because “green” has hit the mainstream as an accepted value just about everywhere. In this case, I suspect that the mafia are simply using the profitable businesses that are available to them, and those businesses happen to be green energy businesses. However, it is a nice sign that the businesses are doing well…
‘Course since about a fifth of the Italian corporations supposedly have ties with one of the three major mafias, the item reported here could easily be chance.
It is sad to say that subsidies have always been a big bonanza for the mafia, especially in Sicily where the mafia is deeply embedded in the government.
I assume that wind energy is highly subsidized in Italy, like the United States. It’s not profitable without subsidies.