Police raid adds drama to rescue attempts at Alitalia

The Alitalia rescue now has the spectre of illegality added to the political intrigue and late night union talks.

Travel Insurance News - 18/09/2008

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Police officers from Italy's revenue guard arrived at the Rome headquarters of the bankrupt national airline yesterday, and left with 10 years’ worth of the company’s financial documents. The official operation was instigated by prosecutors who are investigation the conditions surrounding the carrier's demise.

The inquiry was opened after the airline sought bankruptcy protection on 29 August, acting on a petition made by Codacons, the consumer association which represents the employees and shareholders of Alitalia.

Carlo Rienzi, the president of Codacons, was pleased by Tuesday's raid. "Now we want the responsibilities and names of those who have brought about, or contributed to, the wrecking of Alitalia to be determined and made public."

According to reports in the Italian media, so far no one is an official suspect.

The raid by the police came at a time when ministers of the Italian government, leaders of the employee unions and potential investors were struggling to come to an agreement to rescue the financially-troubled airline.

The terms of the rescue plan call for an assurance that the airline remain Italian-owned, and that a consortium of business leaders that was brought together by Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi would merge the more profitable operating units of Alitalia with its domestic competitor, Air One.

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