Italy police arrest 5 Eni staff in waste trafficking inquiry

MILAN, March 31 (Reuters) - Five staff at a treatment plant operated by oil major Eni (LSE: 0N9S.L - news) were placed under house arrest on allegations of illegal waste trafficking, the Italian police said on Thursday.

The arrests, of managers and workers, are part of a two-year-long investigation by regional antimafia prosecutors into waste management at the plant in southern Italy, a police statement said.

The plant is located in the Val d'Agri oil concession area in the Basilicata Region, in which Royal Dutch Shell (Xetra: A0ET6Q - news) has a stake.

The police said part of the plant had been seized and that the alleged illegal activity had allowed the Italian state-controlled oil major to make "an unjust profit".

Emissions from the plant's chimneys were also beyond legal thresholds and had not been declared, the police said.

In an emailed note, an Eni spokesman said the firm would cooperate fully with magistrates and that the company's lawyers were looking into the matter.

(Reporting by Stephen Jewkes; editing by John Stonestreet)