European Prosecutors Raid Some 250 Sites Across Portugal in €120 Million Mobile-Phone VAT Fraud Case
PORTO — Hundreds of investigators fanned out across Portugal on Wednesday morning, October 7, in one of the largest operations ever run in the country by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), targeting a suspected VAT fraud in the trade in mobile phones, broadcaster RTP reported. There were some 250 searches, more than 40 arrest warrants, and suspected losses to the Portuguese state of more than €120 million.
The searches were carried out by the Polícia Judiciária (PJ) criminal investigation police and the Tax and Customs Authority. RTP put the combined force at about 700 officers; ECO and Diário de Notícias reported some 700 PJ inspectors joined by about 300 tax officials. Most targets were companies, concentrated in Greater Porto, with others in Lisbon and elsewhere.
A judicial source told the Lusa news agency that the two inquiries behind the operation are centred on the Porto region, with suspected offences including corruption, tax fraud, criminal association and money laundering. The case is reportedly built on Operation Admiral, the EU's biggest VAT carousel case, which began with a tax inspection in Coimbra.
Detainees were due before a judge in Lisbon on Thursday. The EPPO investigates cross-border crimes against the EU's financial interests; the investigation is ongoing and any criminal liability will be for the courts to determine.
Sources: Compiled from The Portugal Brief (October 7), reporting RTP, ECO, Diário de Notícias and Lusa.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片 Image: Polícia Judiciária Lisboa.jpg by Jcornelius (CC BY-SA 4.0，经维基共享资源）/ via Wikimedia Commons
