Italy Meloni's bank account spied on - investigation

An ex-bank employee is under investigation in Italy for allegedly spying on the bank accounts of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and other high-ranking politicians.

Over a period of two years, the man from Bari spied on the current accounts of around 3,500 bank customers, including those of the head of government and some of her ministers, according to Italian media reports. The man's motives are still unclear.

The unusual access to the accounts was discovered during an internal audit. Suspicions were raised after the employee's frequent account queries were noticed. The man was dismissed and is now under investigation for improper access to computer systems and attempted procurement of information. The police searched his home and confiscated smartphones and computer devices.

President's account also affected

In some cases, the man is also alleged to have spied on credit card statements. From the investigators' point of view, this is particularly serious. The statements also enabled him to monitor and reconstruct the movements of politicians. According to media reports, the ex-bank employee denied having downloaded any data.

The accounts spied on included those of Meloni's sister Arianna and her ex-partner Andrea Giambruno, according to media reports. They also include those of the President of the Italian Senate, the Minister of Defense and the designated EU Commissioner Roberto Fitto, who all belong to Meloni's party Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy).

SDA