Man in his 70s accused of helping people evade paying millions of kroner in taxes

Økokrim believes that a former auditor in his 70s has helped 84 people evade paying taxes on about NOK 100 million over a period of ten years.

He was arrested during a police operation on Monday, when Økokrim searched two addresses associated with the man, TV 2 writes.

On Tuesday, he was remanded in custody for two weeks in Oslo District Court. The charge applies to matters dating back to 2011.

Up to 2020, Økokrim believes that he has helped 84 customers make their fortunes look smaller than they have actually been.

The police believe the tax evasion covered about NOK 100 million, which has led to around NOK 30 million in losses for the state in the form of tax revenues.

Denies criminal guilt

“According to the report, this was done in a planned and speculative way,” police attorney Henrik Brødholt in Økokrim told the newspaper Dagens Næringsliv.

Brødholt says that it is not yet known how much the customers knew about the evasion.

The man’s defender, lawyer Morten Furuholmen, says that the client denies criminal guilt.

“This is justified by the fact that he has exclusively contributed to the accounting based on information received from customers and the Tax Administration.”

Appealing the custody decision

The man is appealing the custody decision, Furuholmen told TV 2.

Police attorney Henrik Brødholt believes that there is a real danger that the accused will influence witnesses in the case. 

Økokrim wants to interrogate as many of the 84 customers as possible during the two-week imprisonment period.

The man has, among other things, worked as an auditor but lost his credentials in 2000.

Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews

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