Police have arrested three individuals in Hungary over a fraudulent cross-border VAT scheme that cost the country almost 1.4 million euros ($1.56 million), the European police agency Europol said in a press release on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd June, 2020) Police have arrested three individuals in Hungary over a fraudulent cross-border VAT scheme that cost the country almost 1.4 million Euros ($1.56 million), the European police agency Europol said in a press release on Tuesday.
"Last week, the Hungarian National Tax and Customs Administration ... unravelled a sophisticated tax evasion scheme which caused close to half a billion forints ( 1.4 million) in tax loss to the Hungarian state budget. A total of 3 individuals were arrested for their involvement in this value-added tax (VAT) fraud scheme," the Europol press release read.
The members of the scheme purchased soybeans from Slovenian companies that were managed by Slovakian citizens, before selling the beans on the Hungarian market without paying VAT, Europol said, adding that the group also established an accounting office to handle all financial operations.
Investigators from Hungary, Croatia, and Slovenia took part in the operation to uncover the scheme, Europol said. The European agency provided a secure network for investigators to communicate and offered analytical and operational support.
VAT scams across the European Union allow criminal groups to obtain roughly 60 billion euros in profits annually, Europol stated.
In April 2019, six individuals were arrested in Hungary over allegations that they were involved in a separate VAT fraud scheme. During the raid, assets totaling 70 million euros were seized.
