A €30 million scam was set up against the non-profit organisation that runs the cathedral of Florence at Antima Maria del Fiore, the historic Jotto bell tower and the Baptistery of St. John’s.

The fraud is said to have taken place over a six-month period, with illegal money laundering and the issuing of fake receipts. Nine people involved in the case were placed in temporary custody, with carabinieri operations taking place in Lombardy, Tuscany and in the Latium region, with Rome as the capital.

The defendants are Italians, Nigerians, Albanians and Chinese. The Italian authorities have managed to seize a total of 700,000 euros in the last three months.

The non-profit organization Santa Maria del Fiore has as its main mission the protection, promotion and valorization of the religious, historical and social value of the Florence Cathedral and all its important monuments.