Who is Flavio Becca? The bricklayer who is about to crash

Flavio Becca is clearly an ambitious man. The Italian-born bricklayer-turned-entrepreneur who lives in Luxembourg, built his property and sports empire out of nothing. But, as every child knows from the story of Icarus, fly too close to the sun and your wax-glued wings dissolve.

Becca has been attracted by the sun, too many times to survive the damage. His empire is about to crash, because it was based on nothing more than sweet-talk. Politicians and even a state bank are among the victims of his ambitions, and he loved to surround himself with luxury and high-flyers.

Oddly, for observers of the ‘Becca myth’, it is not entirely clear what his empire is made of. Property and sporting ventures – so much is clear. Press reports mention a nebulous network of more than 80 companies, all of which too small to require regulation. Directors of one company often also serve in senior positions at other Becca firms, weaving a tight – unregulated – network of investment and property firms.

He also owns a number of Quick burger bar franchises (which may explain his rotund physique) and a hotel in Luxembourg.

More prominently, Becca invested in a €600m real estate development fund called Olos, which would in 2014 be the subject of a dubious court case over the split of assets with his co-investor. Becca claimed he owned 90% of the underlying value in the investment vehicle, something his business partner denied – the deal was supposed to be an equal 50:50 distribution.

Land grab with a bitter ending is a familiar theme in Becca’s story. In the early days of the 2000s, he planned a national sporting stadium with adjacent shopping mall in Luxembourg. Then-prime minister Jean-Claude Junker rejected the Livingen plan, and shopping centre developer Rollinger, which had bet on Becca’s ability to deliver as the chief developer, sued him.

Rollinger’s faith in Becca was not unfounded: The secretive entrepreneur was close to politicians and high-ranking civil servants in Luxembourg. He also owned the majority of land on which the new stadium was supposed to be built, something that the planning department held against him when they delivered their final verdict, citing unfair competition. As it turned out, one of Becca’s firms also owed a substantial amount of money to state bank BCEE, much of which would have been used to finance the stadium – Becca himself didn’t have the liquidity for the project. While politicians in the country may have protected him to avoid his bankruptcy and resulting loss to state coffers, the prolific stadium plan was one step too far into the limelight. Becca’s support network disintegrated before his eyes.

2011, the same year his stadium bid was rejected, was really the year Becca’s wings started to crumble. His home and offices were allegedly raided by police – the charge was suspicion of embezzlement. Sources close to the investigation reported prosecutors found, among other luxury items, a number of watches by Swiss-Italian company Anonimo, all in their original packaging. The chest full of luxury was a small glimpse into the taste of Becca, who is said to be an investor in Anonimo and also a high-net-worth client in the jewellery stores of Knokke, the prestigious Belgian coastal resort. The trained bricklayer is understood to be accused of having used high-end luxury items for money laundering, bribes and to ‘pay’ invoices. He is also accused of having bought these items for himself, using funds from a company he didn’t wholly own.

And finally, also in 2011, his professional cycling team, Leopard, failed to attract a corporate sponsor, meaning Becca lost an estimated €15m. Two of the team’s key athletes also crashed out and a third failed a doping test ahead of the Tour de France.

Fast forward to 2015, and Becca is crashing down to earth with resounding speed. He is understood to be formally charged with embezzlement, accused of having bought private luxury items including wine, jewellery, weapons and even land for extensive hunting ground in south Germany through a company he co-owns, Kurt-Construction.

German newspaper BILD reported Becca bought the hunting land mainly for prestige purposes, to host members of the German and Luxembourg political elite and many of his business partners who are just as secretive as he is.

But the name Becca has become toxic – many former allies have turned their backs to him as he is rumoured to be “de facto bankrupt”. It is not known whether he still develops properties or just fights the numerous legal battles he is embroiled in. Icarus is about to taste the sea.