(PRIMASPORT) BARI, 7 JULY 2026 – Searches are underway at the offices of SSC Bari, from the SSC Napoli and of the Filmauro As part of an investigation coordinated by the Bari Public Prosecutor's Office and carried out by the Guardia di Finanza, the suspects are Luigi and Aurelio De Laurentiis.
According to what was disclosed by the investigators, Luigi De Laurentiis, sole director of SSC Bari, and Aurelio De Laurentiis, president of the board of directors of SSC Napoli and legal representative of Filmauro, are registered in the register of suspects for false social communications in relation to the 2024 budget of Bari and for fraudulent bankruptcy connected to the request to open the liquidation procedure for the Apulian company.
The investigation into Bari's accounts
The investigation stems from in-depth analyses of SSC Bari's financial statements, explanatory notes, and management reports, supported by technical consultancy commissioned by the Public Prosecutor's Office.
According to investigators, the club would have recorded systemic losses of approximately 30 million euros between 2019 and 2025, with a significant capital deficit and a significant debt exposure, in the absence of a concrete recovery plan.
The Bari Public Prosecutor's Office has also filed a request to initiate liquidation proceedings against the club, following its relegation to Serie C following the play-offs against Südtirol.
Elia Caprile's transfer is also at the centre
Among the episodes being investigated is also the transfer of the goalkeeper Elia Caprile from Bari to Napoli in the summer of 2023.
According to the reconstruction of the Guardia di Finanza, Bari would have sold the player for 2.2 million euros, without providing for participation clauses in any future capital gain.
Subsequently, Napoli, after having used Caprile in only four official matches and having valorised him through the loan to Empoli, would have sold him to Cagliari for approximately 8 million euros, realizing an estimated capital gain of approximately 7 million, which, according to the investigative hypothesis, would have remained entirely with the Neapolitan company.
Searches also to acquire documentation
The searches also concern three sporting directors and the player's agent, not investigated, exclusively to acquire documentation deemed useful for the investigation.
These are the former sporting directors of Bari Ciro Polito, of Naples Cristiano Giuntoli e Mauro Meluso, in addition to the prosecutor of Caprile Graziano Battistini.
The Prosecutor's objections
The documents show that the Prosecutor's Office considers SSC Bari's net worth to be negative since 2022, due to the losses accumulated in recent financial years.
According to investigators, the company was able to continue operating thanks to extraordinary interventions by its sole shareholder, Filmauro, through liquidity injections, debt write-offs, and asset revaluations.
The investigation, opened in early 2026, was developed based on technical reports submitted between January and May of this year and will now determine any criminal liability. The charges are currently pending. investigative hypotheses, which will be subject to the checks required by the procedure. (PRIMASPORT)
