Three members of the Elkann family, including Ferrari Chairman John Elkann, have settled an alleged fraud case with the Italian government. Along with siblings Lapo and Ginevra, the three will pay 183 million euros ($214.5 million) to Italy’s tax authority as well as commit to one year of community service. The decision allows Elkann, who also serves as chair at Stellantis and briefly led the company following Carlos Tavares’ departure last year, to avoid admitting any wrongdoing in a tax evasion case stemming from an 800-million-euro estate from his grandmother, who died in 2019.

The Legal Drama May Soon Come To A Close

When the Elkanns’ grandmother (and widow to former Fiat chairman and respected industrialist Gianni Agnelli) died in 2019, the family posited that her estate was based in Switzerland, which exempted the inheritance from Italian taxation. However, officials in Turin claimed that Marella Caracciolo actually resided in Italy from at least 2010 on, suggesting that her family was trying to avoid paying significant taxes on her rather large estate. The recent settlement will allow the Elkanns to avoid charges, however.

According to Reuters, Italian prosecutors seem to be satisfied with the Elkanns’ solution and have asked a judge to drop any criminal proceedings against John, Lapo, and Ginevra. The siblings will share financial responsibility for the fine, which will go to the Agenzia delle Entrate, Italy’s central revenue and tax agency. Notably, neither Stellantis nor Ferrari are implicated in any of the proceedings, with everything traced back to the trio’s personal dealings alone. That bodes well considering the supercar manufacturer just announced the return of the Testarossa.

In addition to the monetary component, the Ferrari chairman agreed to a year of community service at an institution he will propose to the authorities. Reuters said Elkann could potentially serve at a center for the elderly or another social-service organization, although it’s not clear if the news outlet was speculating on the matter. That said, if you find yourself volunteering in Northern Italy any time soon, keep your eyes peeled for the scion of the Fiat fortune.

A Soap-Worthy Family Saga

But while the Elkann siblings might be out of hot water, legally speaking, a personal drama relating to their share of the Agnelli family fortune is still being hotly disputed. The Elkanns, who are the great-grandchildren of FIAT co-founder Giovanni Agnelli, have been duking it out in civil court with their mother Margherita Agnelli over their share of grandfather Gianni Agnelli’s estate.

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In 2004, Margherita Agnelli signed agreements following Gianni’s death that would put most of his assets in the hands of the Elkann children, who came from her first marriage to their father, Alain Elkann. However, she is now trying to overturn those contracts, which would leave more money in the coffers for the five children she mothered in her second marriage to Serge de Pahlen. A civil case on the matter, which could potentially leave more of Gianni Agnelli’s 1.2-billion-euro estate to the de Pahlen children, sees Margherita battling her three eldest children in court.

Her lawyers said that the Elkanns’ tax settlement would have some bearing on the civil case, which they contend illustrates a plan “devised and implemented to the detriment of Margherita Agnelli.”

Source: Reuters