Financial Crime World

Title: Seven Suspects Arrested in Netherlands for €13M VAT Fraud in Belgium

(Brussels, 24 May 2024)

Significant Arrests in Ongoing VAT Fraud Investigation

  • Seven individuals were arrested in the Netherlands by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Brussels, Belgium, in connection with a €13 million Value-Added Tax (VAT) fraud scheme against the Belgian Treasury.

Suspected Fraudulent VAT Refund of €13.7 Million

  • A Belgian subsidiary of a Dutch company sought a VAT refund totaling €13.7 million from the Belgian authorities.
  • The Belgian Treasury wired the funds to several suspects’ bank accounts.
  • One Belgian bank identified the transactions as potentially fraudulent and returned €3.7 million to the treasury.

Alleged Unlawful VAT Refund Claim

  • The EPPO alleges that the VAT refund request was unlawful as there was no evidence of actual goods being traded.
  • The Belgian tax authorities were presented with fake invoices and fraudulent VAT declarations, allowing suspects to claim a refund.

Missing Trader Scheme

  • The Dutch company was known as a ‘missing trader,’ utilizing EU rules on cross-border transactions between member states to obtain fraudulent tax refunds.

Attempted Fraudulent Scheme with Another Dutch Company

  • After the successful VAT refund in Belgium, the suspects attempted a similar scheme with another Dutch company.
  • Their claim for over €4 million was not processed due to growing suspicions.

Seizure of Luxury Goods and Cash

  • Searches were conducted at companies and homes linked to the suspects, with assistance from law enforcement agencies.
  • Luxury goods worth over €200,000, €7,000 in cash, and a car were seized during the raids.

Previous Money Laundering Investigation and Asset Seizures

  • In a separate Dutch money laundering investigation, the FIOD and Dutch Public Prosecutor’s office had previously seized two Porsches, one Lamborghini, and four bank accounts worth €671,000 from some of the suspects.

European Public Prosecutor’s Office’s Role and Further Investigations

  • All parties are presumed innocent until proven guilty in the Belgian courts.
  • The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), an independent public prosecutor of the EU, is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.

Luxury goods seized during the raids:

  • Worth over €200,000

Suspects’ assets seized in Netherlands:

  • Two Porsches
  • One Lamborghini
  • Four bank accounts worth €671,000

Cash and other assets seized during the raids:

  • €7,000 in cash
  • A car.