Henry John Woodcock (born on 23 March 1967 in Taunton, England) is an Italian prosecutor currently based in Naples,[1]
Woodcock's father was British and worked as a teacher at Livorno's Naval Academy in northern Italy and his mother was from the southern Italian city of Naples. Woodcock became a prosecutor in 1996 and has become noted for his investigations in high-profile scandals including the Italian "Vip Gate" in 2003, and "Savoiagate" in 2006.[2]
Woodcock worked in Potenza for about ten years where he was a colleague of the former magistrate Luigi De Magistris, now mayor of Naples, and they cooperated in anti-mafia investigations.
On 16 June 2006, Woodcock asked for, and obtained from the Giudice delle Indagini Preliminari an arrest warrant against Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy in Varenna accusing him of participating in corruption, forgery, and organization of prostitution in relation to an investigation of the Casino of Campione d'Italia. The arrest was made after wire taps had been intercepted between Vittorio Emanuele and other suspects during a two-year investigation. Thirteen of 24 people investigated were arrested. Seven of these were jailed, while six were placed under house arrest. Among the other suspects were Salvatore Sottile, the spokesman of former foreign minister Gianfranco Fini and casino managers from Messina, Sicily. Italian television also indicated that Vittorio's cousin Simeon II of Bulgaria, the last Tsar and former prime minister of Bulgaria, was under investigation.[3] Vittor Emanuele was acquitted in Rome in 2010.[4]
Woodcock moved to Naples in September 2009.[1]
References
- ^ a b "Pool Mani pulite, ecco Woodcock" (in Italian). napoli.repubblica.it. 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2010.
- ^ Article about H.J. Woodcock (in italian)
- ^ Mitteldeutsche Zeitung (German)
- ^ "Videopoker, assolto Vittorio Emanuele" (in Italian). corriere.it. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 7 October 2010.