On December 17th, the FBI raided Ducati North America’s Mountain View, California offices. The FBI declined to provide an official reason for the raid, but multiple sources believe it to be related to financial matters.
As per some other sources who spoke to Roadracing World, around 30 armed FBI agents performed the search. Due to Covid restrictions, allegedly only two employees were on site at the start of the raid, with one additional coming in near the end, according to Shawn Keane, a Bay Area Riders Forum moderator.
Read: VW Keeping Lamborghini And Ducati, But Mum On Bugatti
In addition, while the FBI has not confirmed if they raided anywhere else, Asphalt & Rubber‘s own sources were able to figure out that several high-level Ducati North America employees’ homes were also searched, and that the nature of the search is possibly related to a financial crime investigation.
The FBI delivered a statement to both Roadracing World and Asphalt & Rubber, merely confirming a few particulars of their raid on Ducati North America’s offices, but not the reason as to why.
“I can confirm that FBI San Francisco was at that location on December 17, 2020, to conduct court-authorized law enforcement activity,” FBI spokesperson Katherine Zackel wrote. “As of today’s date, no public records are available. Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, I cannot comment further at this time.”
Ducati Marketing Director Phil Read said in an e-mail to Roadracing World: “It is Ducati North America’s practice to cooperate fully with inquiries from government agencies. As part of that cooperation, Ducati North America does not comment on those inquiries.”
