Mario Adinolfi placed under house arrest: fraud and risk of further fraud through "Cristo Regna"
The leader of Popolo della Famiglia was arrested on 8 July on charges of fraud and tax evasion. The preliminary investigation judge ordered the precautionary measure, fearing the repetition of the crimes.
Adinolfi under house arrest: judge fears further fraud through "Cristo Regna" initiative
Mario Adinolfi was placed under house arrest on Wednesday 8 July, on charges of fraud and tax evasion. According to Google News IT — Crime (it), the preliminary investigation judge Giulia Arcieri ordered the precautionary measure, considering the leader of Popolo della Famiglia "ready" to commit new deceptions through the "Cristo Regna" initiative, launched following the experience of "Scommessa Collettiva", which is the focus of a Financial Police investigation.
The judge justified the precautionary measure with the "concrete and present danger of reiteration of criminal conduct of the same type as that being investigated", namely fraud and tax evasion. According to the order, Adinolfi is alleged to have operated with "Scommessa Collettiva" for approximately "15-20 years", and subsequently created "the further Cristo Regna initiative" through which he was raising funds from supporters.
Over 4.7 million euros in five years
Based on the reconstruction of financial movements on Adinolfi's bank accounts, AGI reports that over the past five years, the collection of more than 4.7 million euros would have been established. Only a portion of this would appear to be related to sports betting activities. The majority of the funds received would have been transferred to third parties and spent on personal expenses for the purchase of luxury goods, including watches, gold bars, foreign coins, paintings, boats and travel.
According to the judge, "Cristo Regna" appears to reproduce, "in the same manner" as "Scommessa Collettiva" and "in an unlawful way", the collection of funds which, "in light of what has so far emerged", could constitute fraud against "other victims".
The profile of the suspect according to the judge
In the order, Adinolfi's "dangerousness" also emerged from "various television interviews" — apparently referring to reports from Le Iene — from which the judge observed "his attitude of denying the debts incurred and statements about the alleged falsity of the complaints filed against him". The judge noted that such statements "in the present proceedings appear truthful in that they are corroborated by the bank transfers carried out and by the emails exchanged between the parties to the agreement".
The alleged victims, according to the order, "stated that they had entrusted their financial resources to Adinolfi, trusting in the return of capital and the payment of periodic remuneration", as presented by the suspect himself. They would have been convinced by his "public notoriety", his political activity at national level, his role as a journalist and founder of associations with a Catholic and family orientation, as well as by the image of "expert poker player who claimed to be able to win by eliminating chance through specific algorithms".
Risk of evidence tampering
The house arrest is said to have been necessary to avert the risk of "evidence tampering". The judge highlighted the danger that Adinolfi could approach individuals who had already filed complaints to persuade them to withdraw their statements, "given that some of them would be vulnerable subjects in relation to compromised health conditions or from a financial perspective", having invested all their capital in the operation promoted by the suspect.
The Financial Police, Economic Police Unit, stressed that "there is concrete risk of recidivism with respect to new conduct of fraud, unlawful raising of capital, tax crimes, presumably already underway". The judge clarified that investigations are still ongoing, with a focus on the statements of the alleged victims and the "acquisition of further banking and fiscal documentation in relation to financial flows still being reconstructed".
"Cristo Regna" promoted on social media
Adinolfi had explicitly promoted "Cristo Regna" in several Facebook posts, including one on 7 October 2025 in which he invited people to register with "the CR association of committed Christians" by writing to a dedicated email address and presenting themselves as prospective members.
The news of the arrest was picked up by the Instagram account of Le Iene, which recalled that it had covered the matter extensively with reporters Filippo Roma and Alfredo Liuzzi, gathering "testimonies from people who claim to have lost substantial sums by participating in the so-called 'scommessa collettiva'". The programme stressed that "today these allegations are at the centre of the investigation that led to the precautionary measure". Roma shared the post in his Stories. Before Le Iene, the matter had been brought to public attention by Mr Marra in the Cerbero Podcast.
Source: Google News IT — Crime (it)