Franco Ambrosio
| Franco Ambrosio | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Francesco Vittorio Ambrosio 18 September 1932 Ottaviano, Naples |
| Died | 15 April 2009 (aged 76) Posillipo |
| Cause of death | Blunt trauma |
| Nationality | Italian |
Francesco Vittorio 'Franco' Ambrosio (18 September 1932 – 15 April 2009) was a businessman from Italy who financed Formula One racing teams Arrows and Shadow in the late 1970s. He became a multi-millionaire through wheat trading, primarily for pasta production, and built up a large business empire. He was involved in financial scandals and served jail terms. He was murdered in a robbery at his home near Naples in 2009.
Francesco Vittorio Ambrosio was born on 18 September 1932 in the San Gennarello area (frazione) of Ottaviano in the Naples metropolitan area, close to Mount Vesuvius.
At the age of 18 he joined a wheat milling business near Naples which he rose to lead within 10 years. He renamed the business Italgrani in 1960. Its huge financial growth led to his nickname 'the king of grain' (Italian: il re del grano). Italgrani expanded rapidly in the 1980s into Africa, Australia, and the United States. Ambrosio created a holding company comprising up to 50 companies, importing and exporting various commodities. The businesses gradually unravelled in the 1990s as his involvements in several financial scandals were discovered. He declared the Italgrani company bankrupt in 1999.
Ambrosio sponsored the Shadow Formula One team in 1977, backing the Italian driver Renzo Zorzi. Zorzi's lack of success led Ambrosio to have him replaced by the more promising Riccardo Patrese. Ambrosio joined the majority of the Shadow staff when they broke away to form the Arrows Formula One team for the 1978 season. The first Arrows car was named FA1, using Ambrosio's initials.
Franco Ambrosio was arrested several times for fraud and financial irregularities.
In 1980 he was jailed in Lugano for complicity in a fraud scheme involving the Banco di Roma in Switzerland. Ambrosio made two unsuccessful escape attempts - in November 1981 by bribing a guard and hiding in a garbage bin, and in August 1982. His sentence was for five years, but he was released in February 1983 after serving three years.
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