Customs officers assist in tax refund fraud of 80 billion

31 customs officers from Ho Chi Minh City and An Giang received bribes to sign false and incorrect customs declarations to help a company defraud tax refunds.

The Ho Chi Minh City Police Department has just completed the investigation into the case of Le Dung, former director of Saigon Food Technology Joint Stock Company (Saigon Food Technology Company) and his accomplices for smuggling; fraud; bribery; and bribery brokerage.

Transnational fraud organization

Among the 43 defendants proposed for prosecution, 31 customs officers from Ho Chi Minh City and An Giang were prosecuted for the crimes of abusing their positions and powers while performing official duties; lack of responsibility... These customs officers helped defendant Dung defraud tax refunds of more than 80 billion VND.

According to the records, in order to defraud tax refunds, Dung colluded with Tran Thi Bich Tuyen (residing in Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City) to set up ghost companies abroad. These ghost companies would sign economic contracts to purchase goods from Saigon Food Supplement Company. Accordingly, Saigon Food Supplement Company would sell cigarettes but in reality would export low-value items such as rice or worthless goods to refund VAT, appropriating state assets.

According to the investigation agency, Dung assigned people to connect, grease and discuss the issue of sharing a percentage with customs officers at the rate of 20% of the refunded tax amount and dozens of customs officers and civil servants in Ho Chi Minh City and An Giang were involved.

Value added tax invoice and two defendants Dung and Tuyen. Photo: AS

Police determined that three Ho Chi Minh City customs officers from Saigon Port Region IV did not inspect the goods but still confirmed them.

Specifically, Nguyen Tien Loc, a customs officer at Saigon Port Customs Branch, Region 4, was assigned to inspect 10% of declared goods. However, Loc did not inspect the goods but still recorded a confirmation that the goods had been inspected and were as declared.

Le Ha received the documents and submitted them to the leaders for approval of the form of goods inspection. Knowing that Saigon Food Supplement Company had not been granted a license to trade in tobacco, he still submitted them for signature while in reality the company exported rice and many other low-value items such as rice husks, instant noodles... but declared in the export documents that they were Caraven "A" cigarettes to appropriate tax refund money.

28 customs officers signed forgery

The investigation concluded that there were a total of 28 defendants, former customs officers working at Khanh Binh border gate customs in An Giang province, who knew clearly that there were no exported goods but still signed fake export declarations and fake customs clearance procedures to receive bribes from businesses.

Specifically, Nguyen Van Bien, former Head of Khanh Binh Border Gate Customs Branch, directed the signing of 92 fake customs declarations for tobacco exports to receive bribes of more than VND265 million. Thai Thanh Nguon and Nguyen Phi Cong (former Deputy Head of Khanh Binh Border Gate Customs Branch) directed the signing of 120 fake customs declarations to receive bribes of more than VND230 million. The team leader of the professional team signed 20 fake customs declarations to receive bribes of more than VND23 million.

Also at Khanh Binh customs, dozens of lower-level customs officers knew that Saigon Food Supplement Company did not export real goods and opened fake declarations, but still received documents, confirmed the export of goods across the border and received money from the business.

Ho Chi Minh City police determined that Le Dung and his accomplices appropriated more than 36 billion VND from Saigon Food Supplement Company and defrauded the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department of more than 80 billion VND in VAT refunds.

According to phapluattp.vn