Significant financial losses of 50 million euros from tax evasion could lead to imprisonment for up to ten years.
Here's the paraphrased version of the text:
This case was initiated by the European Public Prosecutor's Office, leading to the conviction of three key offenders, ranging in age from 42 to 45, for various tax evasion and document forgery charges related to a criminal organization and business operations. The court handed out ten-year prison sentences to two men, while another criminal received an eight and a half year sentence.
The Economic Criminal Chamber of the Regional Court additionally mandated the seizure of massive funds that were secreted during the commission of the crimes. Furthermore, the chamber condemned the proprietor of a Berlin-based car company implicated in the "VAT carousel" scandal and his staff to prison terms of five years and five months, and two years respectively.
The court determined that the defendants had engaged in cross-border car trading using dummy companies to conceal their illicit relationships. They also exploited specific aspects of the European VAT system, which exempts intra-European trade of goods from VAT charges. subsequently, they expanded their profitable business model to deal in medical masks.
The judgment is yet to be legally binding. The three main defendants remain in pre-trial detention. The chamber already sentenced a former co-defendant notary to a two-year prison term on probation in February for document forgery and office falsehoods.
