Friday, September 16, 2011

Asian Agri allegedly makes Indonesia losses IDR1.29 trillion

An experts at Financial and Development Supervisory Agency revealed the governmnet has been harmed at least IDR1.29 trillion of loss by PT Asian Agri, due to unpaid taxes.
Head of Investigation at Financial and Development Supervisory Board (BPKP) Jakarta region Arman Sahri disclosed the potential loss in the court, while representing the prosecutor to review the tax fraud lawsuit against Suwir Laut, former Manager of Asian Agri at the Central Jakarta District Court yesterday.
The loss, as he continued, is concluded from comparing the audited Asian Agri Group's Annual Tax Letter, submitted to Tax Office Tanah Abang I and II, with the general book and audit by public accounting firm upon the company's financial report.
The investigation was carried only to 10 units, out of 14 units of the suspected business entities. "There are four other units that we can not submit yet to the panel of judges," he said.
The modus Asia Agri had used to avoid the tax obligation, as he explained, is to sell products to its overseas affiliated companies in very low prices. "Another modus is paying several consultant services which then included as expenses, but in fact they never exist."
The company also sold their products with a very low price, while the cost of goods sold was heavily marked up from the exact value.
The alleged tax fraud was uncovered after the former financial controller of the group named Vincentius Amin Sutanto disclosed it to the Corruption and Eradication Commission in late 2006.
The case was taken over by the investigator from Directorate General of Taxation in January 2007. At the end of the investigation, tax investigators suspected the tax case fraud has made the government loss IDR1.4 trillion of tax income.
Vincentius had been sentenced to prison for 11 years, after his judicial review was rejected by the Supreme Court.

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