Dubai, artificial island seized by the court of Naples: created with Camorra money

WORLD

17 Jun 2024 - 10:22

The island, called Taiwan, was purchased in 2008 by Raffaele Imperiale, a well-known clan leader arrested in Dubai in August 2021

The judge of the court of Naples Maria Luisa Miranda has ordered the seizure of an artificial island that is part of the archipelago called "The World". built in the sea in front of the coast of Dubai. The island, called Taiwan, was purchased in 2008 by Raffaele Imperiale, a well-known Camorra leader arrested in Dubai on 4 August 2021. Imperiale was for years one of the most wanted organized crime bosses together with the mafiosi Matteo Messina Denaro and Giovanni Motisi and the other Camorra member Renato Cinquegranella.

Archipelago now almost abandoned

After his arrest and subsequent return to Italy, Imperiale began to collaborate with the Italian justice system. Through his lawyer, he made documents available to investigators to reconstruct the purchase of the island, which has just been ordered to be seized. Formally, the island is registered to a company managed by a Neapolitan entrepreneur who lives in Dubai. Imperiale claims to have paid 30 million euros for the island. In the meantime, the artificial archipelago has been almost abandoned: the navigable canals that serve to connect the islands have become blocked and almost all the buildings constructed are uninhabited.

14 years and 9 months in prison requested

In a new trial that opened last fall, the public prosecutor Maurizio De Marco requested 14 years and 9 months in prison for Imperiale. The last few months have served the court to understand whether it was actually possible to seize Imperiale's island. In recent days, Judge Maria Luisa Miranda has therefore issued the seizure decree: the notification is the first act of the procedure for the international rogatory that should allow the Italian State to acquire the island.