C[omp]ute

From: andrew cooke <andrew@...>

Date: Sun, 19 Apr 2015 15:52:51 -0300

..

  This is a loose translation of an article in La Tercera, 2015-04-19.
  The online version can be seen at 
  http://www.latercera.com/noticia/nacional/2015/04/680-626083-9-la-sofisticada-trama-del-grupo-de-socios-que-habria-estafado-al-fisco-por--8-mil.shtml

  This translation is unofficial, amateur, and made mainly to help improve my
  Spanish.  Please do not rely on this for any important detail.

  Andrew



The Sophisticated $8,000m (US $13m) Tax Fraud

* The accused used a complex network of companies to avoid paying taxes for 6
  years.

* Fraudulent tax invoices were exchanged between companies.

By Felipe Diaz and Victor Rivera [original byline]


At the end of Q3 2014, before false tax invoicing was a common topic of
conversation, the Tax Office (SII) detected a series of irregular returns from
a group of investors who planned to defraud the State of $8,638,098,553
between 2005 and 2011.

So started an investigation of one of the country's largest tax evasions, both
by total amount and number of people involved.

On October 21 2014 the SII lodged a complaint with an investigating Judge
[7th Juzgada de Garantia de Santiago] against 5 people for tax evasion [delito
tributario sancionado en el articulo 97 no 4] - the submission of maliciously
incomplete and incorrect tax declarations.

According to the SII investigation the accused had "created fictitious
companies whose only function was to increase IVA [VAT / Purchase Tax]
credited to other companies owned by the same group, decreasing the taxable
income declared to the authorities" [I'm unsure on the exact details].

Evidence was provided to the Public Prosecutor [Fiscalia Centro Norte] and
Police (Financial Crimes Division) [Brigada Investigadora de Delitos
Economicos Metropolitana (Bridec) de la PDI].


Modus Operandi

According to the investigation, the first network of companies was constructed
between 2005 and 2008 by the accused Luis Mardones Sanches, together with
Fernando Nanjari Alvarez, acting as legal advisor, and Fernando Kiblisky
Budnik, as financier.  They created 6 companies (staffing agencies): Servicios
de Personal Urbe DA; Servicios Integrales de Personal SA; Productora Nacional
de Servicios SA; Gamma Servicios de Personal SA; Global Work SA; and Delta SA.

The aim, according to the complaint, was to "provide false invoices to
companies Delta SA and, finally, Cicorp SA (administered by the accused Miguel
Sepulveda Eljatib and his legal representative (and company lawyer) Mario
Cartes Eljatib)."

Similarly, "Cicorp SA, in turn, provided false invoices to Telecommunicaciones
Siglo XXI SA, Intercity Service, Nuble Ingenieria SA, Constructora Perez y
Gomez SA, who all charged for supposed computational services, for plans and
three dimensional models.  These companies were controlled by the accused
Miguel Sepulveda Eljatib and Mario Cartes Eljatib."

During that period, according to SII estimates, the fraud amounted to
$5,675,257,345.

Between 2009 and 2011 the formula was repeated.  Some companies were
continued, and Bristol SA, Agency SA, and Laborum SA were added, as staffing
agencies, providing services to Delta SA and Milenium SA, which in turn
invoiced for non-existent services to Efco Servicios Generales SA.  The amount
involved over this period comes to $2,962,941,208.

The complaint ends with "all the details above, taken together, show
irregularities involving all the companies, with the aim of avoiding tax on
sales and services, using false invoices on non-existent commercial
operations [again, not sure I have this exact]."


Response

La Tercera tried to locate all the involved, succeeding only in contacting the
lawyer of Cicorp SA, Mario Cartes.

Via email he said that "I am not the legal representative, nor a member or an
investor, in any of the companies mentioned in the complaint.  I also have no
relationship with the other people listed, except Miguel Sepulveda, who is a
relation, and I have been lawyer for him personally, and for his company,
Cicorp SA."  He added that "with respect to the objections made against
providers to Cicorp SA, I have cooperated completely since 2009, when I
delivered to the SII all the accounting and tax details they requested, and so
I expect that when the investigation is complete the situation will be
clarified."