Criminal Conspiracy and Contractual Fraud: Acquittal – Court of Monza (January 23, 2025)

With judgment no. 255 of January 23, 2025, the Court of Monza excluded the crime of association and over 120 episodes of fraud in the sale of motor vehicles, reasserting the principles of personal criminal liability in economic criminal law.

THE PROCEDURAL MATTER

The judgment of the Second Criminal Section concerned one of the most complex proceedings of recent years. At the center of the trial were the car dealerships World Car S.r.l. and A2 Car S.r.l., well-known entities in Brianza for vehicle trading.

The employee sellers of these companies had been charged with over 120 episodes of contractual fraud, in addition to the accusation of criminal conspiracy aimed at the commission of an indeterminate series of crimes against property.

According to the prosecution, the fraudulent scheme involved sales contracts with a promise of delivery never fulfilled, advertising contracts with reimbursements never paid, fictitious registrations, and alterations of vehicle mileage.

THE COURT'S DECISION

The Panel, presided over by Dr. Carlo Ottone De Marchi, pronounced the full acquittal of all the accused sellers.

In particular:

• for the crimes of contractual fraud, the Court ruled that the fact did not exist;
• for criminal conspiracy, it declared that the fact had not been committed.

Decisive was the recognition that the sellers had a merely executive role, without decision-making power, limited to the contract signing phase. Strategic choices and practice management remained with the de facto directors, responsible for the corporate crisis.

Among the acquitted subjects is also D.A., successfully defended by Attorney Roberto A. Catanzariti of the Legal Aid team, who demonstrated the absence of initial intent and his client's non-involvement in the criminal scheme.

THE AFFIRMED LEGAL PRINCIPLES

The judgment of the Court of Monza reaffirmed some cardinal principles of corporate criminal law:

1. Initial intent and contractual fraud: Non-performance remains civil in nature if the original intention not to perform is not proven.
2. Personal liability: Employees and collaborators are not criminally liable for an automatic extension of any criminal conduct of the directors.
3. Criminal conspiracy: The plurality of illicit conduct is not sufficient; proof of a stable and autonomous bond with criminal aims is required.
4. Qualified technical defense: The acquittal obtained confirms the importance of a strategy based on jurisprudence and the principle of legality.

CONCLUSIONS

The maxi-trial in Brianza concluded with the full acquittal of all the accused sellers. A ruling that constitutes a firm point for jurisprudence, strengthening the distinction between civil non-performance and criminal offense, and reiterating that criminal liability cannot be inferred by presumption but must be based on concrete evidence.