Who is the banker who spied on the accounts of the Meloni sisters and other politicians: “I acted alone, pure curiosity”

The list of politicians and well-known names spied on by a Apulian banking it starts from the prime minister Giorgia Meloni and her sister Arianna, but passes through the president of the Senate Ignazio La Russa, the ministers Crosetto and Santanchè, the governors of Puglia Michele Emiliano and of Veneto Luca Zaia. There are prosecutors and police representatives, from Puglia and beyond, politicians from every party from Massimo D’Alema to Luigi di Maio, from Nichi Vendola to Matteo Renzi. There are VIPs and public figures from Totti to John and Lapo Elkann, the Berlusconi family, Al Bano, Luisa Ranieri, Paolo Bonolis, Paola Egonu.

It was spying on all these people Vincenzo Coviello, 52 years old, from Bitonto who worked as a banker in Bisceglie. Between February 2022 and April 2024 he would have had access to the sensitive data of over 3,500 customers across Italy. The newspaper Domani reports that the bank employee has been fired. Disciplinary proceedings have been opened against him. The investigation would have started from the complaint of an account holder who had been notified of anomalous accesses to his account. The Bari Prosecutor’s Office is investigating.

Vincenzo Coviello was heard by prosecutors in recent months and said he was moved only by personal curiosity. «I’m a control freak. I did everything myself, and in any case I never downloaded any documents.” Both his workplace and his home were searched. The 52-year-old is under investigation on suspicion of unauthorized access to computer systems and attempted procuring of information concerning state security. According to the investigations carried out between 21 February 2022 and 24 April 2024, Coviello carried out «a total of 6,637 unauthorized accesses to the data of 3,572 customers held in 679 branches of the Intesa Sanpaolo banking group and that specifically he had taken steps to query the data of numerous personalities from the world of politics, entertainment, sport and news”.

According to reports Republic the investigators hypothesize that the unauthorized access took place «to procure for oneself or others, through the consultation of that data, information which, in the interest of the security of the State or, in any case, in the internal or international political interest, of the State had to remain secret.”

The case has raised many doubts about security of the banking system, as well as political reactions with the prime minister and the defense minister who spoke about dossier. Intesa San Paolo explains: «The employee’s behavior not in line with internal procedures and sector regulations emerged during the ordinary control activities, including a complex system aimed at identifying any anomalous or risky behavior relating to the consultations carried out by the employees of the Bank”.