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last update:Nov 22, 2006
Five Japanese held for pork tax evasion
Tokyo prosecutors on Thursday arrested the former president of major meat
wholesaler Kyochiku in Ehime Prefecture and four others on suspicion of evading
tariffs on pork imports.
The total figure could well exceed €66 million, according to investigative
sources. That would mean it is the highest ever in Japan.
Exploiting a tariff
system
The five are suspected of exploiting a tariff adjustment system designed
to protect domestic pork producers.
The system was established to protect domestically produced pork. When the
import price is less than the standard price, which is set considering the price
of domestic pork, the difference in price is collected as a tariff.
The cheaper the pork, the more customs taxes the importer will have to
pay.
Evasion
Kyochiku is suspected of having reported prices for imported pork from
Denmark from around April 2002 to September 2003 that were higher than the price
paid. This way the firm evaded the difference in tariffs, sources said.
The company also used Taiwanese and South Korean trading houses, making it
more difficult to trace the imports, according to sources.
Prime
minister
The Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe (photograph) also was named as his
support groups were said to have received almost €40,000.
However, Abe was quick in trying to contain the potential scandal. His office
admitted receiving the donations but added that it returned the entire amount
after the news broke.
In a similar tariff evasion case that came to light last year, Nagoya-based
meat wholesaler Fujichiku was indicted for bypassing €48 million in import
duties.
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