(PLO) - On August 31, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court opened the first-instance trial of the case involving Thanh Bac Fashion Company Limited (TBF) in Ho Chi Minh City. At the trial, Lu Thi Quoc Ninh (35 years old, former branch director) was sentenced to two years in prison, and Do Thi Hong Thuy (28 years old, former tax reporting accountant) received a one-year suspended sentence, both for the crime of tax evasion.
TBF Company, headquartered in Hanoi and registered under the name of Dang Huu Phuong, specializes in trading watches, eyeglasses, and other consumer goods imported from abroad. The company also expanded its business by establishing branches in Ho Chi Minh City. However, in reality, Dang Huu Phuong was merely a driver for the company, while the actual operations were handled by two foreigners of Singaporean nationality.
(Thousands of businesses and individuals commit tax fraud)
Tax evasion and appropriate penalties.
On December 23, 2013, the TBF branch on Nguyen Trai Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, was unexpectedly inspected by market management authorities in coordination with the police. During the inspection, authorities discovered numerous violations at the branch. Specifically, the unit violated business registration regulations by not matching its actual business activities and inventory, and violated regulations regarding labels – imported goods lacked Vietnamese supplementary labels.
In 2014, the TBF branch reported a decrease in revenue at seven stores in Ho Chi Minh City, with a declared tax liability of 111 million VND. During the investigation, the police verified that Thuy had altered the accounting system at the request of the branch manager, Ninh. To reduce the amount payable to the state, Thuy omitted items related to revenue, value, and quantity of goods sold, while the branch's actual revenue was 124 billion VND.
According to statements given to the investigating agency, Ninh was directed by two foreigners. The investigating agency subsequently summoned these two foreigners for questioning several times, but both were absent and have since returned to their home countries, so their statements have not been obtained to date…www.expertis.vn
