The investigation of an accident on February 7, in which an inebriated truck driver from Brazil carrying a cargo of garlic crashed against a bus, has brought to light a possible tax evasion manoeuvre: goods are being exported to Brazil through shell companies so as to avoid paying taxes.
The Argentine Minister of Finance, Marcelo Costa, said: "From the information we have, it seems that garlic is being exported via this illegal route with documentation from shell companies. These are companies that don't really exist but that have all their papers in order. In Brazil, they are paid in cash for their cargo. Hence, the dollars don't go through the normal circuit and they avoid taxation."
The minister said that the current investigation was focusing on two main aspects: labour and tax.
Claudio Gil, general manager of Mendoza's Tax Administration, said they had found teenagers working in some of the operations and that they had immediately required them to present the parental consent and medical fitness certificate that the legislation requires them to have in order to be able to work.
One of the warehouses that was investigated is located in Rodeo de la Cruz' Carril Ponce. The owner of this business, Carlos Napolitano, admitted that his workers came via a cooperative, but added that, "nothing indicates that we're doing something wrong, we're not hiding anything, everything is done in plain sight."
The man added that there was talk of embezzlement and that it was a very strong word to be used when there was no evidence of it. "We've been visited by different agencies, they've all asked questions and we've submitted all of the documentation that they've requested proving that everything is being done correctly."
Ruben Boris, Under-secretary of Labour, said they found some breaches in health and safety. He also stated that they had asked for the employee's documentation, such as time control records, books and receipts. He explained that they would investigate if the cooperative was being used to take advantage of the workers and, in case they found irregularities, the business could be fined or shut down.
Source: losandes.com.ar