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MILAN, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Eleven people were arrested in Milan on Wednesday on suspicion of crimes including tax fraud, money laundering and mafia infiltration in Expo Milano 2015, local reports said.
The arrested, including lawyer Danilo Tipo, were linked to firms that were awarded contracts worth a total of around 20 million euros (some 22 million U.S. dollars) for the world exposition held in the Italian business capital from May 1 to Oct. 31 last year.
The involved firms were part of a consortium specialized in setting up stands which was appointed by Fiera Milano trade fair center to built some pavilions at the Milan Expo including French, Equatorial Guinea and Qatari ones, according to Milan-based newspaper Corriere della Sera.
The involved firms reportedly had resorted to a system of false invoices to create slush funds. The money was then laundered in Sicily island region, where the suspects had links with a noted mafia clan.
Finance police in Milan on Wednesday seized assets worth about 5 million euros in the probe, ANSA news agency said.
The investigation, that started around one year ago, shows the interconnection between criminal organizations and the local economy, prosecutors told a press conference here.
"Slush funds, foreign operations, tax evasion are among the most popular laundering systems," Milan chief prosecutor Francesco Greco said.
"The criminal organizations have managed to infiltrate public subsidiary companies. This is a disquieting situation," he said.
Prosecutor Ilda Boccassini noted that the investigation has uncovered a presence of Sicily's so-called "Cosa Nostra" mafia besides Calabria-based 'Ndrangheta in wealthy Lombardy region, of which Milan is the capital city.
She also added that the probe had found nothing of criminal relevance about the Milan Expo or Milan trade fair companies.
The Milan world exposition attracted more than 21 million visitors and over 140 participant countries, with a record number of 54 self-built pavilions.
The expo's sole commissioner of the Italian government Giuseppe Sala, who last June became the mayor of Milan, on Wednesday pledged in a statement to continue to combat mafia infiltrations in his city. Enditem
