New information has come to light regarding the so-called “fake Belgian residents” case, following the publication of the full judgment by Monaco’s criminal court…
The 200-page decision, as reported by Monaco Matin, sheds further light on what judges described as a “system of corruption,” involving the illegal acquisition of residency permits for 14 Belgian nationals linked to businessman Pierre Salik. These permits, investigators found, were obtained solely to help them evade taxes in Belgium through fabricated residency in the Principality.
At the centre of the affair was Divisional Commissioner Christian Carpinelli, formerly head of the Administrative Police Division, who was sentenced to three years in prison and fined €100,000 for orchestrating the network. The court concluded that Carpinelli had received “tens of thousands of euros” in cash and gifts in exchange for facilitating the scheme through his agency, Immobilia 2000, which provided fake addresses and even manipulated utility use to create the appearance of real occupancy. While Carpinelli has chosen not to appeal, the public prosecutor’s office has until November 12 to decide whether to do so.
The court also sentenced Jean-Louis Coletti to 18 months in prison and a €100,000 fine for his role in laundering the proceeds, while several others received suspended sentences. One police officer, René Jaguenaud, was acquitted after nine years under suspicion, restoring what his lawyer called his “honour and integrity.”
The affair, first exposed by Carpinelli’s ex-wife Bernadette Lacrampe amid a bitter divorce, revealed an intricate web of corruption and falsified residency. Lacrampe herself was sentenced to a 12-month suspended term for her part in benefiting from the operation. The judgment now provides the clearest insight yet into a scandal that shook Monaco’s administrative and police circles — and, after nearly a decade of proceedings, brings one of the Principality’s most complex corruption cases to a close.
