Italian Police Smash School Exam Scam

A decent collection of A-levels or a baccalaureate can cost, if not blood, then certainly sweat and tears. But in Italy an equivalent qualification can be bought for between €2,000 and €7,500 (£1,350-£5,000).

Twenty-three people accused of selling or buying school-leaving certificates, were yesterday under arrest after coordinated raids from Turin in the north to Trapani on Sicily. The Verona-based prosecutors leading the inquiry said a nine-month investigation had shown the existence of a national traffic in exam passes.

Those facing charges included headteachers, teachers and pupils. More arrests are expected.

The prosecutors said they already had proof that some 40 schools and 1,000 students were involved in the scams, and would scour the records of previous years as well.

All the schools so far incriminated are privately run. One existed solely for the purpose of issuing unearned passes.

Before the arrival of the school inspectors, its owners would rent premises and pay teachers and pupils to attend for as long as the inspection took. Once it was completed, the "school", staff and students vanished into thin air.

The law faculty of Rome's Sapienza University was last year revealed to host a flourishing traffic in exam passes.