1997 Daily Telegraph article exposing the BNP’s favourite Italian nazi:

By Ciaran Byrne and Matthew Kalman

A GROUP of Right-wing activists is being investigated by the Charity Commission after opening a chain of charity shops which raise money for the building of a village for "nationalists".

Former members of the National Front and an Italian fascist, convicted of a criminal offence in his own country, are involved in two charities, which claim links to the Roman Catholic Church.

An investigation by The Telegraph has uncovered evidence that the charities are linked to a neo-fascist organisation advocating the destruction of Israel and the repatriation of ethnic minorities. Last night, in response to inquiries by The Telegraph, the commission moved to freeze the assets of the Trust of St Michael the Archangel, a "Catholic" charity which has raised more than £50,000 through four shops. Stewart Crookshank, director of operations for the commission, said: "The public will be extremely concerned about this."

The commission has suspended Roberto Fiore, convicted in Italy of belonging to an illegal organisation, from acting as a trustee to the St George Educational Trust, a sister charity set up to promote the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Last week the shops looked like typical church properties selling second-hand clothes and books. In one west London shop, a leaflet appealed for help to redevelop a deserted Spanish village as a retreat for Catholic families.

However, the Charity Commission is concerned that funds raised are being channelled to a village project in Spain set up by a neo-fascist group called the International Third Position (ITP), whose leading members are known to Special Branch.

The ITP has advertised the "Spanish Village Project" in an internal newsletter as a haven where "nationalists" from all over Europe can live as part of "a new order".

An advertisement in the newsletter says: "Europe is falling apart . . . In the inner cities a whole generation of our youth are being influenced into talking, walking and acting like blacks. Something has to be done now. The movement has taken on a deserted village that we are reconstructing, repopulating and turning into a beacon of hope . . . Comrades should donate or raise funds for the project."

Roberto Fiore is linked to the group as one of the founders of the St George Trust, which obtained charitable status last year. It publishes books on far-Right ideology, including a range of anti-Jewish literature which it sells to ITP members.

The Voice of St George, the ITP's internal newspaper, contains details of numerous political and anti-Semitic texts published by Fiore's charity. The books can be obtained by writing to an ITP address. Last week the material was on sale in the St Michael charity shops.

Fiore, who runs a west London accommodation agency, avoided extradition to Italy despite being found guilty in 1985, in his absence, of membership of the political wing of the Armed Revolutionary Nuclei, a group implicated in the 1980 Bologna station bombing which killed 85 people.

Bow Street magistrates ruled that the Italian government had failed to make a prima facie case for his extradition. Fiore, 38, was originally sentenced to 10 years, but the term was later reduced to three. There was no response last night at his west London home.

This weekend, the Charity Commission confirmed that Fiore had been suspended as a trustee of St George's. A restraining order against the Trust of St Michael has also been issued, preventing the charity from spending its funds or moving money out of Britain.

The commission is also investigating the role of other figures, including Colin Todd, a former National Front regional organiser. He is also listed as a trustee of the St George Education Trust and is understood to be a key member of the ITP.

Mr Crookshank, a Charity Commissioner, said: "We have suspended Roberto Fiore, of the St George Educational Trust, on the grounds that we are concerned about the actions of the charity and would like to clarify its position. We would also like to clarify the position of the Trust of St Michael. Until we are satisfied, the orders will remain in place."

A spokesman for the Catholic Church said: "We have no connection with these people. We'd be very uneasy about anything which calls itself Catholic without some sort of link to the authorities of the Catholic Church."

John Murray, editor of Open Eye, a magazine that investigates far-Right groups, said: "This is symptomatic of attempts by fascists to build their power without attracting attention. They have concentrated on building secret organisations based round businesses and charities, including the Spanish village."