Financial Crime World

Title: Five Suspected in Major Cross-border Tax Fraud Scandal worth Millions; Eurojust Aids Joint Probe

Arrests Made in Coordinated Norway-Lithuania Operation

In a decisive cross-border crackdown on tax fraud, Norwegian and Lithuanian authorities, with the backing of Eurojust, took down a suspected staffing network accused of extensive tax fraud involving the renting of workers for fish farms in Norway.

  • Five individuals were arrested on December 13, 2022.
  • Searches were carried out at nine locations as part of the joint operation.

Suspected Offenses and Financial Damage

Suspected offenses include:

  • Tax fraud, and
  • Complicity in this crime

These fraudulent activities were allegedly carried out by:

  • Ten Lithuanian companies, and
  • One Norwegian company.

The estimated financial damage resulting from these fraudulent activities is a staggering:

  • NOK 8 million (€800,000)

Norwegian Investigation and Eurojust Involvement

An investigation into the matter was initiated by:

  • Norwegian authorities, inclusive of the Norwegian National Authority for Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime (Økokrim), Nordland police district, and Finnmark police district

in 2019.

Eurojust, the European Union’s judicial cooperation organization, was enlisted in July 2021 at the Norwegian authorities’ request to:

  • Set up and fund a Joint Investigation Team (JIT), and
  • Coordinate cross-border judicial cooperation.

Role of Eurojust in the Investigation

Eurojust played a crucial role in the investigation by:

  • Fostering cross-border judicial cooperation,
  • Coordinating four meetings between national authorities, and
  • Managing various mutual legal assistance requests executed during the operation.

Collaborative Effort between Authorities

Both Lithuanian and Norwegian investigators worked in close collaboration to bring the suspected fraudulent network to justice.

Participating in the collaborative effort were:

  • Vilnius Regional Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Lithuanian Financial Crime Investigation Service (FCIS/FNTT) from Lithuania, and
  • Norwegian authorities from Norway.