Former ambassador arrested in Italy for helping Russians obtain Schengen visas

Former Italian ambassador to Uzbekistan Piergabriele di SantʼAgnese was arrested in Rome on suspicion of selling Schengen visas to Russians.

This was reported by the Polish publication TVP World and the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

He held the position from late 2024 to December 2025.

Prosecutors claim that the ambassador had a partner, a Russian with Italian citizenship, Tatyana Tarakanova, with whom they had previously worked in Moscow. According to the investigation, the Russians contacted three travel agencies in Moscow: Happy Travel, Visa4you, and Park Lane.

The agencies then sent visa applications to Tashkent. Through them, at least 95 people entered Italy, although they did not meet the necessary requirements (they did not live in the consular district of Uzbekistan). Russian citizens paid from €4 000 to €16 000 for a visa, although the official fee is from €45 to €60.

The investigation was launched in July 2025 after an inspection by the Italian Foreign Ministry: out of 92 visa cases, in 81 cases the applicants did not even visit the embassy.

Both defendants are suspected of corruption and facilitating illegal immigration.

• According to Euractiv, in 2025, EU countries issued 10.2% more Schengen visas to Russians than in 2024. Russian citizens chose France, Italy, and Spain the most — they accounted for almost 75% of all applications.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.