ROME- The Rome Prosecutor's Office has opened an investigation, coordinated by the Deputy Prosecutor Giovanni Conzo, into the crimes of counterfeiting of food substances and receiving stolen goods.

The investigation started with a clandestine producer of fake olive oil, who had his operational base in Puglia. By following the supply chain, it was then possible to trace some of his restaurateur customers.

Those involved in the investigation are not only the clandestine laboratories but also the owners of the premises, who, according to what emerges, bought this product knowing that it was, at a very low price compared to that of extra virgin olive oil: three euros per litre against an average of nine for real olive oil.

The checks carried out by the NAS carabinieri revealed the use of counterfeit oil in restaurants near the Senate and the Trevi Fountain, but also in Testaccio, Trastevere, Fiumicino and Castelli Romani. Even the canteen of the Ministry of Education, until a few weeks ago, reportedly used a fake extra virgin olive oil.

There are currently 50 establishments involved in the fake oil business, but for investigators it is a much more widespread phenomenon which puts the health of consumers at risk, in particular for tourists who crowd the establishments in the heart of Rome.

This fake extra virgin olive oil was allegedly obtained by mixing poor quality seed oil with chlorophyll and beta-carotene. The seed oil used is of the lowest quality, untraceable and of unknown origin. The liquid was then bottled with labels such as "extra virgin made in Italy."

Some restaurateurs clearly acknowledged the non-transparent buying procedure:

“This person stopped by the restaurant and offered me olive oil.  Clearly, I didn't know him, and I never saw him again. According to her, the oil came from a cooperative and we trusted it. I don't remember how much I paid for it; I think 5.50 euros per litre. It was a good price for an extra virgin olive oil […]In any case it was an oil that we only used for cooking. I ate it too; this demonstrates good faith. Nothing happened, no one ever felt bad."

During the operations, one of the suspects was arrested for "aggravated theft of electricity" and the related illegal food storage was seized (with an estimated value of 450,000 Euros), with hundreds of litres of seed oil and tens of kilograms of food of various types. Cocaine was also found, as well as 1500 Euros in cash, and a person was reported at large for "possession of a narcotic substance". Finally, dozens of counterfeit labels and various evidentiary documentation were seized.