The verdict that sent Antonino Vadalà to prison became final in October 2024. In Italy, he is just one of many people convicted of drug trafficking. However, in Slovakia, he is known as an influential businessman who is capable of shaking Robert Fico’s government.
The Investigative Centre of Ján Kuciak (ICJK) and IrpiMedia spent several months investigating the activities of the Italian businessman, who is allegedly linked to organised crime in Slovakia. Their investigation drew in part on the Kočner Library, a database obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and managed by the ICJK, which contains the entire case file from the Slovak prosecutor’s investigation into the murder of journalist Ján Kuciak and other criminal cases.
In the grasslands of eastern Slovakia, Vadalà grew wealthy alongside Diego Rodà, another Italian businessman, whom he married into. They both raised cattle, and between 2004 and 2018, their companies received €67 million in EU agricultural funds.
In 2013, due to suspicions of EU subsidy fraud, the Slovak police asked their Italian counterparts for information about Vadalà. The response indicated that, upon returning to Calabria, the businessman had associated with prominent figures in the local organised crime scene.
In February 2018, Slovak journalist Ján Kuciak was murdered. He had been investigating Diego Rodà and Antonino Vadalà. The two men were arrested but released 48 hours later, after which they were no longer considered suspects in the killing.
While they were in custody, however, a relative of theirs spoke to a drug trafficker in Rome; the arrests in Slovakia had interrupted a major cocaine supply route to the Italian capital.
During the subsequent trial, which would eventually result in his imprisonment, Vadalà was released and returned to Slovakia. There, he met two entrepreneurs who had also set up businesses in the same area. Both have ties to the Italian 'Ndrangheta.
Image by Claudio Capellini
