Secret Service complaint against Rome Prosecutor: Francesco Lo Voi accused of having released a classified document

Secret Service complaint against Rome Prosecutor: Francesco Lo Voi accused of having released a classified document

The prosecutor of Perugia, Raffaele Cantone, will have to decide whether his colleague in Rome, Francesco Lo Voi, has violated the law by disclosing a confidential document from AISI (Internal Security and Information Agency). The complaint was filed by the Department of Security Information (DIS), which coordinates the intelligence agencies, accusing the Rome Prosecutor's Office of not having respected the necessary measures to guarantee confidentiality of classified information.

The investigation concerns the publication in the newspaper Il Domani of a confidential document relating to Gaetano Caputi, Chief of Staff of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. According to the DIS, the dissemination of this document has violated Article 42, paragraph 8, of Law 124 of 2007, which provides that the classified documents cannot be copied, but only consulted under strict control.

Caputi Case: How the Investigation Began

The case began when Caputi reported to the Rome Public Prosecutor's Office the publication of some articles in the newspaper Il Domani which report details on his personal affairs. The investigation for disclosure of secrets, entrusted to the prosecutor Maurizio Arcuri, leads to the discovery of three accesses made in 2023 by Aisi agents on the database of the Revenue Agency, Tax Point, concerning Caputi himself.

Prosecutor Lo Voi, to clarify the situation, wrote to the then director of the DIS, Elisabetta Belloni, asking for explanations. The answer comes in the form of a ten-page document, classified as "confidential" and signed by the director of AISI, Bruno Valensise. This document describes in detail the actions of the agents in the three accesses to Tax Point. However, the document is then attached to the proceedings and delivered to the journalists' lawyers Il Domani, who publish it in its entirety.

The accusations of the Department of Security Intelligence

The DIS believes that the publication of the document violates the law on secret services. According to article 42 of law 124/2007, classified documents must be stored in a way that protects their confidentiality, allowing the parties to view them without being able to extract a copy. In this case, the document was made public, with the risk of exposing information sensitive to the activities of 007.

The DIS complaint was sent to the Perugia Public Prosecutor's Office, competent for investigations into magistrates in Rome, with the aim of ascertaining any violations.

The clash between government and judiciary

L'The complaint represents a further step in the clash between the government and the judiciary, already ignited following the Almasri case which involved the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano and the ministers Carlo Nordio and Matteo Piantedosi.

While some members of the centre-right CSM are asking for disciplinary action against Lo Voi, the independent advisor Andrea Mirenda has requested a procedure to protect the Rome prosecutor, criticizing Prime Minister Meloni's statements.

Tensions between the prosecutor Lo Voi and Palazzo Chigi are also dragging on over the issue of the state flight revoked for his transfers from Rome to Palermo. In Perugia, a further complaint has been filed by the lawyer Luigi Mele, who hypothesizes that Lo Voi has been charged with crimes such as aggravated omission of official duties and contempt of a political body in the Almasri case.

The role of Copasir and the next steps

During the hearing of Undersecretary Mantovano at Copasir (Parliamentary Committee for the Security of the Republic) the matter was discussed in detail, highlighting the Intelligence concerns about handling classified information. The Lo Voi will be heard by the end of the month by Copasir, while the Minister of Justice Carlo Nordio could decide to start an inspection of the Rome Prosecutor's Office to evaluate any responsibilities..