Parmalat creditors can’t confirm 7bn euros found

MILAN – The head of a group of Parmalat creditors said yesterday he could not confirm a Web site report that they had traced seven billion euros of missing funds to a US bank account controlled by Parmalat’s founder.

“I know the report is out there. The source is probably someone close to us but at this moment I cannot confirm it to you,” Mauro Sandri, Chairperson of the Parmalat Creditors Committee, told Reuters by telephone.Angelo Ricotti, a lawyer working for the creditors’ committee, told Reuters: “I can’t confirm this at all.It’s impossible that we would know something like this.Would we know about it and the public prosecutors wouldn’t? It’s unthinkable”.Parmalat was declared insolvent last month after revealing a hole in its accounts which prosecutors investigating for fraud believe could exceed 10 billion euros.Magistrates are trying to trace the money but believe some of it stemmed from falsified accounts and never existed.The TGfin Web site (www.tgfin.it), controlled by broadcaster Mediaset, said the creditors’ committee had discovered that a company linked to Parmalat founder Calisto Tanzi held seven billion euros worth of US government bonds.-Nampa-RuetersThe source is probably someone close to us but at this moment I cannot confirm it to you,” Mauro Sandri, Chairperson of the Parmalat Creditors Committee, told Reuters by telephone. Angelo Ricotti, a lawyer working for the creditors’ committee, told Reuters: “I can’t confirm this at all. It’s impossible that we would know something like this. Would we know about it and the public prosecutors wouldn’t? It’s unthinkable”. Parmalat was declared insolvent last month after revealing a hole in its accounts which prosecutors investigating for fraud believe could exceed 10 billion euros. Magistrates are trying to trace the money but believe some of it stemmed from falsified accounts and never existed. The TGfin Web site (www.tgfin.it), controlled by broadcaster Mediaset, said the creditors’ committee had discovered that a company linked to Parmalat founder Calisto Tanzi held seven billion euros worth of US government bonds.-Nampa-Rueters