The Milan Public Prosecutor's Office has formally dropped the sports fraud investigation against Inter Milan related to the so-called "referee case," closing an 18-month probe that, according to the decree document, rested on "suggestions devoid of any evidential basis."
The 18-page decree, signed by prosecutors on Tuesday, states that the allegations against the Nerazzurri — investigated under Legislative Decree 231/2001 concerning administrative liability of entities — never rose above the level of mere speculation. The document describes the initial hypotheses as "suggestions, sometimes even intuitions, that, lacking any probatory foundation, did not even allow for the formulation of completed preliminary charges."
Former referee designator Gianluca Rocchi has also been fully cleared in the same decree, with prosecutors applying the same standard: the hypothesis of sports fraud against him was likewise downgraded "to the rank of mere illation."
The investigation had drawn widespread media attention since its existence became public, with prosecutors noting that the intense media coverage of the inquiry further complicated any prospect of useful further investigation. The decree observes that forensic seizures of devices — phones and computers — which had not been carried out earlier by investigative choice, would no longer serve any purpose, as the wiretaps already in progress "appeared to support the accusatory framework" but ultimately failed to yield concrete evidence.
The case revolved around allegations of irregular referee assignments in Serie A matches involving Inter, with Rocchi's role as designator coming under scrutiny. Inter had consistently maintained its innocence throughout the probe, and the club's legal team argued that no evidence ever emerged to support the accusations.
The archiving of the case brings formal legal closure to a matter that has hung over the club since the investigation became public, though the prosecutors' emphatic language in the decree — explicitly ruling out any possibility of reconstituting the case — leaves Inter free and clear without any residual legal exposure.
Sources
- https://www.calciomercato.com/liste/caso-arbitri-la-procura-di-milano-impossibile-incolpare-l-inter-non-prove-ma-suggestioni-degradate-a-illazioni/bltcf93a096916acd51
