Antonio Di Maria

Antonio Di Maria (born 2 March 1971) is an Italian politician, having served as the President of the Province of Benevento and as a 5-time mayor of Santa Croce del Sannio.

Antonio Di Maria was born 2 March 1971 in Santa Croce del Sannio.^[1][2]

Di Maria holds a qualification of a high school diploma, his highest qualification.^[1] He completed his secondary education with a specialisation in accounting and commerce.^[3]

Mere months after receiving his secondary school diploma Di Maria was elected to the Santa Croce del Sannio municipal council before becoming elected in the region's 1999 local elections, in which Di Maria (aged 28) became the second mayor of Santa Croce del Sannio.^[3] He ran with a centre-right civic list (under the banner of UDEUR, a centrist party allied with that coalition) and was elected mayor on 13 June 1999.^[4]

Di Maria sought re-election in 2004 - having served the customary 5-year term. This time he ran as an independent under the Lista Civica banner. He won with a majority. Taking office 12/13 June 2004.^[4]

He would end up not serving a full term, choosing to resign, leaving office 6 February 2007 protesting following the resignation of many Santacrocesi councillors. Following a period of a vacant office, another election was called for the 27 May 2007, again he ran as an independent under the Lista Civica banner. He won with a majority.^[4]

Following this Di Maria would be re-elected twice more with both cases remaining with the Lista Civica - however going under the 'Progretto Insieme' (English: 'Project Together') banner.

Due to statutory term limits applicable to municipalities with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants, he was not eligible to seek another mayoral term in 2022, Di Maria left the mayoral office for the final time 13 June 2022.^[4] Yet, he still serves actively on the Santa Croce del Sannio council.^[2]

On 31 October 2018, Di Maria was elected President of the Province of Benevento, taking office on 1 November 2018. Winning with 57% of the vote, Di Maria defeated the center-left candidate Franco Damiano, mayor of Montesarchio.^[6][7] Di Maria won under the banner of the Us of the Centre party^[8]. The reception to Di Maria's appointment was received positively - Clemente Mastella commenting in Sky TG24's reportage viewed Di Maria's win as a moment of "revitalization" for the centre-right who had previously lacked control in the region.^[9]

He resigned from office 13 June 2022 with the appointment of Antonio Zeoli as mayor of Santa Croce del Sannio, announcing his dismissal 19 May 2022. This was to follow Italian law (Article 1, paragraph 65, of Law No. 56/2014) which dictates that: "The provincial president shall cease to hold office upon termination of the mayoralty."^[10]

Before and alongside his provincial presidency, Di Maria served as President of the Comunità Montana Titerno–Alto Tammaro, an intermunicipal body focused on rural development, environmental management, and cooperation among mountain municipalities in the Benevento area.^[11][12]

He was unanimously elected thanks to an agreement between the People of Freedom (PDL) and the United Democrats (UDEUR). Di Maria replaced Innocenzo Pugliese as president.^[11]

Di Maria resigned 23 January 2020^[13], being succeeded by Gianfranco Rinaldi (mayor of Pontelandolfo).^[14]

In 2023, Di Maria was elected President of the GAL Alto Tammaro^[15], a Local Action Group operating within the European Union’s rural development framework. He still acts as president.^[16]

He has also served as President of Sannio Smart Land, an association involved in implementing projects linked to Italy's Strategia Nazionale Aree Interne (National Strategy for Inner Areas), aimed at revitalizing rural and marginal territories. He was elected 27 December 2024.^[17][18]

22 November 2024, Di Maria was elected to the National Council of Italians (Associazione Nazionale Comuni Italiani),^[19] the principal association representing Italian municipalities. His role as national councillor has been described as representing the interests of small and rural municipalities at the national level.^[20]

Starting in 2019 Antonio Di Maria was accused of corruption. The case spearheaded by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Benevento has remained inconclusive with Di Maria denying wrongdoing. He was arrested alongside 11 officials until he was released - transferring his house arrest for suspension from public office.

In 2019, the Public Prosecutor's Office of Benevento opened an investigation into alleged irregularities in public procurement procedures involving the Province of Benevento, the Province of Caserta, and the Municipality of Buonalbergo. The inquiry originated from a complaint filed by a provincial engineer who reported an attempted act of corruption connected to a public tender procedure.^[21][22][23]

The investigation was conducted by the Carabinieri of the Benevento Provincial Command under the coordination of the Benevento Prosecutor's Office. Investigative tools included wiretaps, environmental recordings, and the use of a Trojan software installed on a suspect's mobile phone. Prosecutors alleged the existence of a structured system aimed at influencing public tenders through corruption, bid rigging, and administrative manipulation.^[24][25][26]

According to investigators, the alleged scheme involved politicians, public officials, professionals, and entrepreneurs. The scheme concerned 11 public procurement procedures, primarily related to:^[21][24]

• provincial road works,
• school construction and maintenance,
• environmental and hydrogeological safety projects.

On 24 November 2021, Antonio Di Maria (then President of the Province of Benevento and Mayor of Santa Croce del Sannio) was placed under house arrest, together with seven other individuals. Ten additional suspects were subjected to temporary bans from contracting with the public administration.^{[27][28][29][30]}

The precautionary measures were ordered by the Judge for Preliminary Investigations (GIP) of the Court of Benevento at the request of the Prosecutor's Office.

The charges, contested in various capacities, included:^{[21][24][25][27]}

• aggravated corruption,
• interference with the freedom of public tenders,
• disclosure of official secrets,
• issuing invoices for non-existent transactions,
• attempted undue inducement,
• attempted extortion,
• obstruction of the contractor selection process,
• ideological falsehood in public acts.

Prosecutors also ordered the precautionary seizure of approximately €49,500, identified as the alleged proceeds of corruption offenses already believed to have been paid.^{[27][28][29][30][31]}

According to the prosecution, Di Maria allegedly exerted political influence over procurement procedures to favour predetermined companies and professionals. Investigators described a system in which public contracts were allegedly assigned through pre-arranged agreements, bypassing or manipulating competitive tender procedures.^[24][8]

Intercepted conversations cited by prosecutors suggested internal tensions between technical officials and political figures, particularly concerning the allocation of contracts for infrastructure and school-related works. The prosecution alleged that some procedures were designed to ensure specific outcomes and beneficiaries.^[8]

In December 2021, Di Maria appealed the precautionary detention order before the Tribunale del Riesame (Review Court) of Naples. The court partially accepted the appeal, revoking the house arrest measure and replacing it with a temporary suspension from public office, while confirming other precautionary measures against several co-defendants.^[32]

At the conclusion of the preliminary investigation, the Benevento Prosecutor's Office requested indictments for all suspects involved in the inquiry. The GIP ordered multiple defendants to stand trial, including former administrators, professionals, entrepreneurs, and several companies. Some positions were severed for procedural reasons.^[33]

The trial was scheduled to begin in September 2022. As reported at the time, the proceedings concerned alleged conduct during Di Maria's tenure in provincial office. No final criminal convictions had been reported in connection with the case at that stage.^[33]

Antonio Di Maria has denied wrongdoing.^[34] Under Italian law, all defendants are presumed innocent until a final judgment is issued.