Ottavio Quattrocchi
| Ottavio Quattrocchi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1938 Mascali, Catania, Italy |
| Died |
(aged 74) Milan, Lombardy, Italy |
| Occupation | Snamprogetti executive |
| Known for | Key figure in the Bofors scandal (given reprieval before death) |
Ottavio Quattrocchi (1938 – 13 July 2013) was an Italian businessman who was being sought until early 2009 in India for criminal charges for acting as a conduit for bribes in the Bofors scandal. Quattrocchi's role in this scandal, and his proximity to Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi through his Italian wife Sonia Gandhi (Antonia Maino), is thought to have contributed to the defeat of the Congress Party in the 1989 elections. In 1999, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) named Quattrocchi in a chargesheet as the conduit for the Bofors bribe. The case against him was strengthened in June 2003, when Interpol revealed two bank accounts, 5A5151516M and 5A5151516L, held by Quattrocchi and his wife Maria with the BSI AG bank, London, containing Euros 3 million and $1 million, a "curiously large savings for a salaried executive". In January 2006, these frozen bank accounts were unexpectedly released by India's law ministry, apparently without the consent of the CBI which had asked for them to be frozen.
On 6 February 2007, Quattrocchi was detained in Argentina on the basis of the Interpol warrant. The Indian investigating agency CBI came under attack for putting up a half-hearted effort towards his extradition and India lost the case for his extradition in June 2007, the judge remarking that "India did not even present proper legal documents". Consequently, India was asked to pay Quattrocchi's legal expenses.
Quattrocchi'S financier son, Massimo Quattrocchi, grew up with Sonia Gandhi's children Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, who are currently rising through the political hierarchy in India. Massimo was reported to be advising the Luxembourg-based firm Clubinvest on business opportunities in India. He was also reported as visiting India frequently, and running an office in Bangalore. He was present in India at the time of his father's Argentina arrest in February 2007, and there is speculation that he may have met Priyanka Vadra around that time.
Quattrocchi, born in Mascali, province of Catania, Sicily, in 1938, arrived in India in the mid 1960s as the representative of Italian oil and gas firm Eni and its engineering arm Snamprogetti. His family became close to the Gandhi family based on their connection with Rajiv Gandhi's Italian wife Sonia Gandhi, now the president of Indian National Congress party. The Special judge Prem Kumar observed in his order of 14 November 2002:
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