Millions in fines and community service for fraud growers

Sixteen cultivation companies from Brabant and Limburg dodged taxes between 2006 and 2010. By participating in a phoney construction they kept profits off the books and had a tax advantage. The businessmen now have to pay fines or carry out community service. This was just announced by the Public Ministry

The fake construction was used to push down the profit and (labour) costs of staff, which meant the companies paid less tax. The PM suspects a 69 year old director of a mediation company in fruit and vegetables was the brain behind the construction. He has been summoned.

Transaction
The sixteen companies accepted a transaction offered by the PM. It means there will be no prosecution if they pay a fine or serve community service. Nineteen growers will carry out 60 to 120 hours of community service. Fines have also been handed out. The companies also have to pay back over 25 million Euro - 25,164,664 Euro to be precise. This is what they earned from the construction. The PM believes this is a suitable punishment.

Not paying taxes
The investigation shows that the growers sold their harvest 'off the branch' (before it was harvested) through a Dutch company to foreign companies.

The products were harvested by foreign labourers in the employee of a Polish agency. The products were sold at an auction and the yield went to the director of the Dutch company through all kinds of foreign bank accounts. They were paid legally, but only based on the agreed prices. The labour costs of the foreign workers were lessened by this.

The extra money (the difference between the agreed price and the eventual turnover) was then illegally funnelled back to the growers. This share wasn't booked by the Dutch administration of the growers, and according to the PM kept away from the taxman in this manner. "No taxes were paid on it. The treasury was therefore cheated out of millions of Euros."

The Soho investigation
All of this was uncovered in the Soho investigation, a large investigation carried out by the ISZW Dectection Service. The investigation focused on the 69 year old director of the foreign companies and the 16 companies in total that used the construction.

The PM suspects that the construction was the idea of the 69 year old main suspect. He is believed to have made the most out of the fraud. The PM will summon him to the court in Den Bosch. The foreign companies were located in Poland, Luxembourg and Cyprus, among others. The PM believes that the suspect used the foreign companies to hide cash flows. He is suspected to have received a considerable percentage of the sales profits of the growers' auctioned harvest.

Fitting dismissal
The PM also accuses the growers who have used this construction of falsehoods as well as laundering income. This is due to the 'harvest from the branch' contracts not reflecting the reality, according to the PM. The received additional turnover was paid into encrypted Luxembourg bank accounts, which the growers has control over. Laundering is undermining criminal behaviour according to the PM. Due to the fraud and the use of cheap labour the growers were able to gain a competitive advantage compared to growers who followed the rules.

Not the master minds
The PM sees the transactions as a suitable punishment for these growers. The PM believes their behaviour is serious, but doesn't see them as the master minds behind the crime. The growers took the opportunity likely offered to them by the main suspect.

Eventually, twelve growers will carry out 120 hours of community service, six will carry out 110 hours and one will carry out 60. They also agreed with the tax service that they will pay the lost income to the treasury. The advantage they obtained according to calculations will also be paid back to the state.

Using pensions
Some growers had already spent the money, which is why other reserves such as the pension had to be used. The PM wants to send a clear signal to the agrarian sector with the taking back of all criminally obtained monies, that using fraudulent means doesn't work.

Eight growers will pay back a large amount:

Growers P.J.T. van Gennip from Beek en Donk, M.F.T. van Gennip and M.M.J. van Gennip of Son en Breugel – who had a joint account for the venture– are estimated to have made 8,959,989,96 Euro with the fraud. This will be paid back to the state and they will carry out 120 hours of community service.
Grower T.J.F. van Gennip from Someren will pay back 3,502,952,43 and carry out 110 community service hours.
T.G.J. van Gennip from Nuenen pays1.161.554,90 and serves 120 hours.
T.J.W van Gennip uit Aarle Rixtel pays 1,141,812,- euro serves 120 hours.
Brothers F.C.M. van Gennip and J.T.P. van Gennip from Gemert, who had a joint account for the venture, with have € 1.912.931,85 taken. J.T.P. van Gennip will also do 120 hours community service.
Due to exceptional conditions (illness and age) F.C.M. van Gennip was only fined.
Brothers J.A.M Michels en P.J.M Michels from Vessem and Horst aan de Maas will pay 1.175.002,55 euro and serve 120 and 60 hours.
Grower W.F.M. Geurts from Milheeze will pay 4.233.826,30 euro and serve 110 hours.
A.W.M van Asseldonk from Veghel will pay 1.965.515,55 and serve 120 hours.
For the other eight companies the amount totalled around 1.100.000. All together it concerns 25.164.664 euro. It will be paid to the state.