Italian journalists probe Zimbabwe links to mafia case

Three Italian investigative journalists have visited Harare to investigate a series of politically and judicially sensitive issues in Italy involving an Italian businessman, a prominent journalist and a Zimbabwean businessman.

The delegation, led by Pisto Moreno of Rai Tre, sought an interview with The Standard after the newspaper first reported on the case in July.

Moreno was accompanied by freelance journalists Venezia Curatora and Leonardo Mannerucci.

The journalists' inquiries centred on how The Standard senior reporter Kenneth Nyangani came to know Italian businessman and former journalist Valter Lavitola, who is currently jailed in Italy over an alleged bomb attack targeting his friend, investigative journalist Sigfrido Ranucci.

Ranucci is a prominent Italian journalist who has been placed under state security protection following his reporting on alleged corruption and Mafia networks in Italy.

The Italian journalists wanted to establish how Nyangani came to know both Lavitola and Ranucci.

Ranucci granted Nyangani an interview earlier this year in connection with a carbon-related case involving a Zimbabwean businessman and Lavitola, who has business interests in Zimbabwe.

Italian prosecutors allege that Lavitola used Mafia-style methods and have claimed that the alleged attack was intended to enhance Ranucci's public profile ahead of a possible entry into politics.

Lavitola has visited Zimbabwe several times in connection with business interests and is reportedly involved in a dispute with a Zimbabwean businessman over a multi-million-dollar company.

The visiting journalists sought to understand how The Standard obtained information about the case, the relationship between Ranucci and Lavitola and the alleged links between the Zimbabwean businessman and the wider corruption investigation in Italy.

"We are not mafias, feel free," the journalists said while introducing themselves.

Moreno said the team had spent the week in Zimbabwe pursuing the investigation.

"We have been in Zimbabwe this week and it's a tiresome job we are doing," he said.

The journalists' visit comes as the Italian investigation continues to attract attention because of the alleged connections between events in Italy and business dealings involving individuals with links to Zimbabwe.