Tax fraud - Raids at Security Services - Suspected: Tax Evasion
Due to suspected tax fraud in the millions in private security companies, tax investigators from Hamburg conducted searches at over 40 objects in several German states and Bulgaria. The Hamburg Finance Authority announced a tax loss of over eight and a half million Euros. According to reports, over 100 tax investigators from Hamburg and Oldenburg, as well as Bulgarian authorities, were involved in a raid at the end of June in Hamburg, Oldenburg, Neumünster, and four locations in Bulgaria. 16 objects were reportedly searched and three suspects were arrested.
According to reports, six suspects aged between 27 and 51 are being investigated in this case for founding a network of fake companies to evade VAT through false invoices. The damage was estimated by the authority at around four and a half million Euros. Three of them had European arrest warrants executed against them in Bulgaria.
Further raids in Hamburg, Berlin, Lower Saxony, and Baden-Württemberg
In a second case, according to reports, six suspects from the security industry are suspected of evading VAT. The damage amounts to 4.1 million Euros, according to the Finance Authority. Additionally, the suspects aged 29 to 43 are accused of money laundering.
According to reports, 143 tax and police officers, under the leadership of the Hamburg Public Prosecutor's Office, had already searched 40 objects in Hamburg, Berlin, Buchholz, Glinde, Oldenburg, and Mannheim at the end of May. In both cases, extensive evidence was secured. The evaluation is still ongoing. Both raids followed months of investigations.
Finance Senator: Consistent action against tax fraud
"The successful actions of the Hamburg Tax Office are an important step in the fight against tax crime," said Finance Senator Andreas Dressel (SPD). This, along with previous rulings in other cases, shows that consistent action is being taken against tax fraud in Hamburg.
Recently, six defendants from the construction industry were sentenced to prison terms of up to eight years by the Hamburg Regional Court for tax evasion through fraudulent invoice chains worth around six million Euros. The court considered it proven that they had evaded VAT in this way.
- The suspected tax fraud in private security companies extended beyond Germany, involving locations in Schleswig-Holstein and additional sites in Bulgaria.
- The Security services in Hamburg and Oldenburg, alongside their Bulgarian counterparts, conducted a significant raid related to tax fraud in the security industry, resulting in three arrests.
- The Great Raid in Hamburg, Oldenburg, Neumünster, and Bulgaria exposed a network of sham companies in Lower Saxony that were used to evade Sales Tax through false invoices.
- The damage from this tax fraud case in the millions was primarily targeted at companies in Baden-Württemberg, further highlighting the prevalence of tax fraud across various industries.
- The Berlin Tax Office has also been involved in investigations related to tax fraud, showing a widespread commitment to combating financial crimes across Germany.
- In order to combat tax fraud effectively, authorities are leveraging advanced technologies and working closely with international partners, as demonstrated by the cooperation between German and Bulgarian Security services.
- Over time, authorities have noticed an increase in tax fraud involving VAT evasion through complicated invoice schemes in the construction industry, leading to heavy penalties and imprisonment.
- The ongoing evaluation of evidence obtained during raids in cities such as Hamburg, Berlin, Buchholz, Glinde, Oldenburg, and Mannheim will likely result in further charges and sentencing in this vast tax fraud case.
- German authorities are taking consistent action against tax fraud, with high-profile convictions in Hamburg and Berlin sending a clear message that financial crimes will not be tolerated, no matter the million-level stakes involved.
