Bronte: stolen, unregistered animals, piles of waste, building violations and illegal work, owner of an equestrian center reported and fined by the Carabinieri.

As part of the campaign of extraordinary territorial controls coordinated by the Provincial Command of the Carabinieri of Catania, a Bronte entrepreneur was reported for environmental crimes, animal welfare, construction and social legislation, and fined for various reasons for a total amount of approximately €60.000.
In particular, in recent days, the military of the Randazzo Company, with the help of colleagues specialized in the protection of CITES biodiversity in Catania and the Veterinarians of the ASP of Catania, have carried out an in-depth check at an equestrian center, located in a district on the outskirts of the city known for pistachios, managed by a 48-year-old local man.

The military, from the first access to the company, immediately realized the presence of numerous violations. In fact, at the end of the operations, the picture that emerged was extremely complex.
In the first phase of the inspection, from a check of the cadastral records of the structure, compared with the historical evolution of the area, the Carabinieri of CITES discovered the presence of 5 buildings in a seismic zone, therefore without any authorization, made of cement material, lava stones and concrete. All the illegal structures, some of which were concluded, were therefore seized by the investigators.

Subsequently, the Veterinarians of the ASP of Catania, together with the military of the Arma, detected numerous non-compliances with the reference standard for the care and management of animals. In particular, they discovered that the death certificates of a horse had not been transmitted, while the stable register appeared not to have been updated for some time and, in particular, of the 23 horses indicated, 2 had already been transferred elsewhere and 9 had not been reported at all.
Furthermore, during the tour inside the company, the Carabinieri reported to the veterinarians a large enclosure, divided into two areas, where there was a large pig and 17 goats, all without ear tags or any document certifying their origin.
Again, all the animals were seized, pending decisions by the health authorities.

Continuing the inspection, the military of the Randazzo force and the inspection personnel noted the total absence of the planned "manure heap", necessary for the natural disposal of manure material, however, they discovered the presence of an illegal landfill of approximately 16 square meters, also seized, containing over 8 cubic meters of waste produced by 50 heads of livestock including horses, goats and pigs.

Investigators also discovered a large metal aviary containing, along with free-for-sale birds, 20 “Carduelis carduelis,” better known as goldfinches. This is a protected species of local wildlife, whose capture and removal from its natural environment is considered hunting theft.
After the bird census activities, the goldfinches were released back into the wild by the doctors, while the owner of the equestrian center was reported for receiving stolen goods.

Subsequently, the inspection activity also focused on checking the work environments. In this context, a man of foreign origin was identified and identified as carrying out some tasks within the facility. The staff of the Labor Inspectorate of the Etna capital, subsequently called to investigate the worker's employment status, ascertained the total failure to register the man in the INPS registers, thus triggering the expected maxi-fine for undeclared work against the entrepreneur, as well as the employer.
At the end of the inspection, therefore, in addition to the criminal charges, 5 buildings, 18 animals and an area used as a landfill were seized, and fines were imposed for a total of approximately €60.000.