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June 2000, the port of Catania in Sicily,

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one of Italy's many attractive sights.

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However, in the shadow of Mount Etna,

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with its rings of smoke that delight the tourists,

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Catania is also a capital for all types of trafficking.

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The port of Catania supplies more than 300,000 inhabitants daily.

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It was also the centre of a vast fraud

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that disrupted the entire EU market

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in a product previously unknown in Sicily.

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Catania is an essential transit port in the Mediterranean

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and millions of tonnes of freight are loaded or unloaded

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on the vessels berthed there.

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Forklift trucks and cranes constantly move a wealth of goods

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in a hive of synchronised activity.

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Nobody really knows the contents of the hundreds

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of hermetically sealed containers stored at the docks.

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There's no way of telling whether goods here

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are in legitimate trade or illegal trafficking.

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Behind the portholes of ships from all over the world,

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meetings are going on and deals are being struck

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to the indifference of the fishermen.

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Despite the constant surveillance of the port authorities,

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the police and customs,

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fraud has well and truly landed in the Bay of Catania.

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Whether the work of criminal organisations

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or individuals acting alone,

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fraud may be concealed anywhere in such a large port.

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Neither surveillance of the port nor the checks that are performed

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can put a complete stop to the activities of the traffickers.

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Both day and night, illegal business is in full swing.

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Financial police and customs keep watch and patrol

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every night in the port to hunt down the smugglers.

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But help from Europe is very often valuable.

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In June 2000, after an anonymous tip-off,

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officials from the European Anti-Fraud Office, OLAF,

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made the unbelievable discovery that there had been

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illegal trafficking in bananas for nearly two years,

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which had netted those responsible for it

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hundreds of millions of euros.

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The trafficking of fruit for a few euros profit per kilo

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might look like a joke.

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However, make no mistake,

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since 4,000 tonnes of fruit a week were involved,

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the entire EU market in bananas was under threat.

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OLAF therefore informed customs and the Italian authorities.

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They could then begin their work together.

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At the outset, this inquiry was only aimed

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at monitoring a vessel suspected of carrying cocaine.

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The inquiry was unsuccessful because no cocaine was found on board.

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However, quite by chance, it was found that the same vessel

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was in fact transporting bananas and attempting to evade customs.

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In the banana sector, the rules entitle

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importers with a valid agri-import licence

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to lower customs duties on goods within the yearly quota,

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compared to the duties levied on non-quota goods.

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Licence holders only needed to pay duties of 55 euros per tonne

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instead of 850 euros per tonne.

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This difference was bound to interest unscrupulous operators

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who, after obtaining forced import licences,

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were forced to pay duties of 55 euros per tonne

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instead of 850 euros per tonne.

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In this case,

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non-expectative attacks to the detriment of the European Union.

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The banana fraud has already been dubbed the fraud of the century.

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In fact, the financial impact of the fraud

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is reckoned to be in the region of 300 to 500 million euros.

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However, these figures only describe

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the amount of customs duties evaded.

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In fact, the fraud itself revolved around the use of

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forced import licences needed to import third country goods

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and release them for free circulation.

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The licences themselves were negotiable

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and were worth somewhere in the region of

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3 to 6 dollars per crate of bananas.

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Therefore, the criminal organisations that sold these false certificates

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made a sizeable criminal profit,

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which represents a real profit of the fraud.

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We've been able to find out how a small village shopkeeper

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from the provinces has managed to build up

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a real empire from nothing

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and control the trade in bananas in the whole of central and southern Italy.

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Thanks to Olaf, we've learned that this type of activity

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is linked to other countries such as France, Spain,

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and Portugal.

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We've also managed to understand what at first wasn't very clear,

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that more profit can be made from this type of fraud

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than from serious crimes such as importing a tonne of cocaine.

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This is the pattern we've been able to uncover

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thanks to assistance from Olaf.

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The work hasn't been easy,

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but it has been made easier through cooperation.

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Indeed, the fraud of the century had been uncovered.

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From then on, there was no time to waste at Olaf's headquarters.

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Two investigators were sent to the scene of the trafficking,

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the first to Paris and the second to Catania.

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Both investigators and agents on the ground had to collect evidence

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and provide added value to the investigations of their colleagues

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and the national services.

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But first, information had to be obtained

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about the legislation in force in the countries

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where the fraud had been committed.

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In criminal matters, each state applies its own laws.

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Furthermore, Olaf's lawyers and agents must strictly adhere to them.

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This enabled Olaf's operation to be backed up by a coordinated strike.

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And the evidence collected could be used

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in national administrative and criminal proceedings.

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At the finance police offices in Catania, the tension is high.

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At least 200,000 tonnes of bananas have entered the port illegally.

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The loss to the community's budget from the false customs documents

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has been so great that these false declarations

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have been dubbed the Eurobananas.

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The Olaf agent is surrounded by representatives from customs,

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the legal team and the police.

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A strategy is adopted to catch the criminals red-handed.

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First of all, a search will be made of the banana ship

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suspected of being involved in the fraud.

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It's just entered the port.

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As a result of Olaf investigations,

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over 1,100 suspect French and Spanish licences have been identified

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that had been used to import bananas illegally into the European Union.

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Bananas entered the community through customs in Spain,

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Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Greece and Italy.

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But above all, it's necessary to obtain watertight evidence

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of the illegal trade being carried out.

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The Olaf investigator sends a fax to the French customs authorities

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as his colleague is awaiting his message in Paris.

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The reply is unequivocal.

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The customs documents are false.

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The moment for which everyone has been waiting is near.

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The ship can be searched.

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Customs officers and financial police don their identity tags.

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The tension is high.

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It's the first time Olaf has been caught red-handed.

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It's the first time Olaf has been caught red-handed.

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Customs officers and financial police don their identity tags.

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The tension is high as they are perhaps about to put an end

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to the banana chaos shaking the EU.

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Captain Maniscalco and his team surround the port

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with sirens and flashing lights switched on.

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Nothing must be left to chance as the risks are high.

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The sums of money involved are significant

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and as one form of trafficking may conceal another,

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criminals could well respond in a big way.

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For increased security, the air force is called in

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while the police launch blocks any attempt to escape by sea.

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Due to the timing of the operation,

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it was impossible to search the ship from top to bottom.

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Every customs document belonging to the captain

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was scrutinised page by page.

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The fraud is confirmed.

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The cargo of bananas has indeed entered Italy fraudulently.

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This new operational phase of the inquiry

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would enable the organisers of the trafficking

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to be identified and brought to justice.

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Without delay, the offices of the company under suspicion were entered.

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The OLAF officer assisted the Italian authorities.

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Actual searches were carried out by the national police forces.

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The next day, the Italian authorities

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Actual searches were carried out by the national police forces.

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On this occasion, the search pays dividends.

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The names of the brokers involved in the fraud

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are found in the files and on computer.

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The documents seized provide watertight evidence

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that trafficking has taken place.

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The suspects are arrested and led away to the finance police.

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It's important to smash the whole network of criminals.

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Now it's the turn of the Italian authorities to pursue the criminals.

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OLAF has played its part in assisting the legal, customs and police services

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of the member states involved in the case.

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Had it not been for the cooperation of customs in other member states,

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the checks would not have succeeded.

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The customs declaration is presented to an office

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that checks whether the particulars of the accompanying documents

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tally with those of the declaration itself.

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And the document is then captured by the customs computer system.

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Thanks to the information obtained from the fraud prevention services

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in the European Union,

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it is possible to identify attempts at fraud

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that are to the detriment of the community.

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However, OLAF's work is far from over.

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Its officer will have to provide details of his actions

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when testifying before the Italian courts.

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Indeed, judging by our actual experiences in the past,

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OLAF's work is a decisive and essential factor

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in helping us carry out our inquiries,

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as OLAF acts as a driving force,

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as well as coordinating and circulating information.

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Thanks to experience at OLAF,

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and because of information meetings

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organised with the magistrates' unit before leaving Brussels,

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the OLAF officer complied strictly with the procedures

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concerning the legislation in force in Italy,

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and his testimony was admissible in the court in Catania.

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The case is now taken its final steps

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and the case is now taken its final steps

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and the case is now taken its final steps

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and the case is now taken its course through the criminal courts.

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OLAF must now ensure that the financial loss

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to the European Union is made good.

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The money lost from the fraud must be recovered.

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The relevant national authorities

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have to recover the sums of money in question,

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but OLAF has an important role to play here also,

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despite the differences between the national systems.

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We have 15 different legal systems in the member states.

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This explains why, on the basis of OLAF's experience on the ground,

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the European institutions are working towards the creation

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of a European public prosecutor,

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which should help harmonise criminal prosecutions throughout the Union.

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However, until a European public prosecutor is created,

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attempts will be made to remedy the fragmentary nature

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of the European criminal law enforcement area

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through recourse to the legal expertise of OLAF's staff.

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This contrasts with the fact that the fraudsters

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were organising their illegal activities unhindered,

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well before the opening up of borders.

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We speak the same language, the same legal language.

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This is also very important for us,

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to have the close cooperation with the magistrate

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and the judges in the member states.

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What lessons should be taken from Operation Banana?

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It should be remembered that this is not an isolated case,

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as OLAF handles hundreds of cases every year.

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But Operation Banana is also an exemplary case

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of a criminal attack against the financial and economic interests

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of the community.

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Four factors made the fraud easier.

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The complex nature of community regulations.

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The transnational nature of the fraud.

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The existence of an organised criminal system.

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And finally, the dispersal of judicial authorities

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throughout the entire European Union.

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If it had not been for OLAF,

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the case in question might have gone unpunished.

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OLAF added value due to its expertise in community regulations.

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A transnational approach to its operations.

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The multinational composition of its investigators.

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The expertise in financial and legal investigations of OLAF staff.

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The complexity of the case of OLAF's penalty system in the Great Minister's jail.

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That pain.

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OLAF's ability to reach at once,

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and to sair with others is also indispensable.

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To the best of our knowledge,

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OLAF intends to break Universal Law

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and launch a new independent system,

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that spares the highest risk!

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Special thanks to