George Mathias
SPANISH authorities have broken up a sophisticated organised crime ring involved in a carbon tax fraud scheme.
According to police, the cabal avoided paying carbon taxes on various goods throughout Spain.
The group illegally transported millions of euros worth of refrigerated greenhouse gases from China to the Spanish port of Valencia.
The gang claimed to be sending to non-EU destinations which would thus make them exempt from an EU tariff.
This made them exempt from import taxes and the European market’s carbon emissions tariff.
Photo: Flickr
But instead the gang kept the refrigerated gas in Spain and sold it on the black market for a much reduced price to consumers.
Dawn raids were conducted by officers on multiple stakeouts where they arrested 27 suspects involved in the racket.
They discovered some 110 tonnes of stored gas, with a retail value of €11 million.
According to the Spanish treasury, the fraud swindled the taxpayer out of €3.5 million.
In June of last year six people were arrested accused of evading more than €200 million in carbon-tax on the German market.
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