The Tax “top brass” in прокуратурë THE VAT FRAUD SCHEME IS REVEALED, 11 COMPANIES INVOLVED THEFT OF 5 MILLION USD The Tax “top brass” in prosecutor’s office The Ministry of Finance files a complaint against 8 former directors and employees of the Tirana Tax Directorate. Suspected of stealing with false invoices and deregistering companies By LORENC RABETA The Ministry of Finance has sent eight tax officials to the General Prosecutor’s Office for criminal prosecution over a VAT fraud scheme through which 5 million dollars were stolen from the state treasury. The scheme involved a number of Asian companies which, in cooperation with several Albanian companies, committed fraud using Value Added Tax invoices. “The facts and elements uncovered fulfill the elements of the criminal offense of ‘Theft committed through abuse of office’, an offense committed in cooperation, as provided for by Articles 135 as well as 25 and 26 of the Criminal Code. The amount of the theft caused is 515,455,275 lekë,” the General Directorate of Taxation (DPT) said in a press release. In yesterday’s statement, the DPT says that, at the request of the Director General of Taxation, the Internal Audit Directorate at the Ministry of Finance audited the reimbursement procedures... Continues on page 7