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Income Tax officials raided eight premises in Chennai and one place in Vellore and seized Rs 105 crore in old and new currencies and gold bars worth Rs 35 crore. This is considered to be the biggest seizure since PM Narendra Modi announced <keyword id="3315394" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="demonetisation">demonetisation</keyword>. 
 
The officials raided premises belonging to industrialist Shekhar Reddy, his associate Srinivasa Reddy and their agents, including a person called Prem Kumar. They also raided jewellery shops. 
 
Out of Rs 105 crore, Rs 95 crore were in old notes and Rs 10 crore mostly in the newly introduced Rs 2,000 denomination currency. 
 
The I-T department officials got a tip about Prem Kumar exchanging demonetised currencies for gold bars, and following his trail they stumbled upon the Reddy associates. 
 
"While the Reddys claimed they had bought gold bars from jewellery shops, we are investigating how they managed to get Rs 10 crore in 2,000 denomination notes when there is a restriction on cash withdrawal from bank accounts and people are standing in queues for hours to withdraw money from banks and ATMs," said an I-T official.

Biggest crackdown on black money: Tax officials seize Rs 105 crore in new and old currencies, 125kg gold in Chennai, Vellore

Tax officials have summoned a tea seller who, allegedly, has given Rs 1.5 crore in <keyword id="48792" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dowry">dowry</keyword> for wedding of his six daughters. A video went viral in which, Leela Ram Gujjar, who owns a tea stall at Haduata near Kothputli, is flaunting cash and counting the notes in a loud voice as local villagers and community leaders watch. He is then seen handing over the bundles of notes to the families of the grooms. He has been summoned by the <keyword id="6421825" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Income-tax-officials">income tax officials</keyword>. "We will wait till Thursday. He will be questioned on his income, and it will be checked if he filed his returns or not. If the dowry he paid stemmed from unaccounted for income, a tax deduction process would be initiated. He has also been asked to produce documents pertaining to his income," a senior I-T officer told TOI. Besides, Gujjar will also be questioned for marrying off his four minor daughters. Sources told TOI, Gujjar had printed wedding cards for just two of his elder daughters, but the four minor girls were also married at the April 4 ceremony. Police are now on the lookout for Gujjar and his family. "We visited their house but they are missing. Their relatives have been asked to appear at the police station," an officer posted at the Kothputli police station told TOI.

Tea seller gives Rs 1.5 crore in dowry for daughters; under I-T lens

<keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword>'s crackdown on Chinese firms and mobile apps is "becoming increasingly unhinged" and the action is nothing but "politically-motivated crackdowns on businesses from <keyword id="1334" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword>", state-run Chinese paper <keyword id="107898" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Global-Times" source="Orion">Global Times</keyword> has said. The Indian government this week banned 54 Chinese mobile applications, which are posing threat to national security. The Income Tax department on Wednesday also carried out raids at multiple premises linked to Chinese tech conglomerate Huawei across the country in connection with alleged tax evasion. The Global Times said in an editorial that after failing to gain any advantage by stirring up tension at the border with China, which drew stern responses from Chinese soldiers, "New Delhi has shifted its out-of-control jingoism toward a more vulnerable target - Chinese businesses operating in India". "Over the past several months, Indian authorities have banned dozens of Chinese mobile apps and raided local branches of many Chinese firms in shady 'tax investigations'," the editorial said late on Thursday. Chinese telecom giant <keyword id="110306" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="huawei-technologies" source="Orion">Huawei Technologies</keyword> confirmed earlier media reports that Indian tax authorities raided multiple offices of the firm and questioned its local employees. In a statement, Huawei said that it was confident that its operations in the South Asian country "are firmly compliant with all laws and regulations" and that it would "fully cooperate" with Indian authorities. "Huawei's response is standard for any business caught in such circumstances; however, let's be clear, Indian authorities' raid most likely has nothing to do with the Chinese firm's compliance issues, but has a great deal to do with the increasing hostility of officials in New Delhi toward China," read the editorial. Before Huawei, several Chinese companies, including smartphone maker <keyword id="874458" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="xiaomi" source="Orion">Xiaomi</keyword>, have already been targeted. In January, Xiaomi was ordered to pay 6.53 billion rupees ($87.8 million) for unpaid taxes alleged by the Indian authorities, claimed the editorial. Last month, multiple tax raids were carried out at the premises of Chinese smartphone makers in the country. The Finance Ministry issued a statement, saying that Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi's local company in India had engaged in "tax evasion" and demanded that it pay a total of Rs 6.53 billion ($88 million) in taxes owed between April 2017 and June 2020. Xiaomi denied the claim, saying that the company adheres to legal and compliant operations around the world and abides with the relevant laws and regulations of each jurisdiction in which it operates. Chinese mobile phone brands are highly popular in the Indian market, and their market share far exceeds that of local Indian brands. According to the editorial, Chinese officials have expressed concern over Indian authorities' actions against Chinese businesses and have repeatedly called on the Indian side to treat Chinese firms fairly. Commenting on India's latest raid of Huawei offices and bans on Chinese apps, a spokesperson for the Chinese Commerce Ministry on Thursday mounted a noticeably stronger response, calling the actions "a series of crackdown measures" that have seriously harmed the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese firms. "For that, China expresses serious concern," the spokesperson said. "However, though New Delhi appears to be constantly testing China's patience, Chinese officials have and will likely continue to avoid being dragged into tit-for-tat measures with India," read the editorial. "With this, we believe China will take necessary measures to protect Chinese interests overseas wherever they face discriminatory actions." SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/investment/news/cryptocurrency-criminals-are-turning-into-crypto-whales/articleshow/89664896.cms">Some of the biggest cryptocurrency HODLers are also crypto criminals, finds Chainalysis report</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/cbi-questions-former-nse-ceo-chitra-ramkrishna-regarding-alleged-abuse-of-co-location-facility/articleshow/89664579.cms">CBI questions former NSE CEO Chitra Ramkrishna regarding alleged abuse of co-location facility</a>

India's crackdown on Chinese firms, apps getting 'increasingly unhinged',  as per China's Global Times

The <keyword id="6354751" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Income-Tax">Income Tax</keyword> department has raided the house of a diamond merchant and his nephew, who is known to be quite popular publicly. The IT authority alleged that the duo were dealing in banned notes after demonetization. 
 The raids were conducted in Bharat Diamond Bourse (<keyword id="502190" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="bdb">BDB</keyword>), Mumbai's diamond hub. 
 
While an official report is awaited, the ET had reported earlier that some diamond merchants are dealing in scrapped notes after November 8 when the Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes got banned. 
 Tax authorities from <keyword id="24899" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="scindia">Scindia</keyword> house raided four mid sized bullion dealers in <keyword id="166543" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zaveri-Bazaar">Zaveri Bazaar</keyword> last month after they deposited huge amounts of old notes immediately in the aftermath of demonetisation.

IT department just raided a renowned
diamond merchant in Mumbai for dealing in banned notes

Taxmen conducted searches on bureaucrats in <keyword id="6357713" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uttar-Pradesh">Uttar Pradesh</keyword> and Uttarakhand and found undisclosed income worth over Rs 20 crore. Raids were conducted during the last two days against four government functionaries in these states including against a general manager of the <keyword id="490422" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uttar-Pradesh-Rajkiya-Nirman-Nigam-Ltd">Uttar Pradesh Rajkiya Nirman Nigam Ltd</keyword> (UPRNN) in Dehradun for alleged "misuse of official position" and subsequent charges of tax evasion. "Documents showing undisclosed investments in farm houses spread over hundreds of bighas and immovable properties in other cities have been seized," a senior official told PTI. Apart from income, tax officials also detected costly assets and luxury vehicles such as Range Rover, an Audi and a BMW car from the premises of the official and his family. They said the I-T teams were surprised to find 15 large LED television sets fitted in the farm house which was constructed on a land earmarked to setup a factory. A well- equipped gym, a guest house and an under-construction swimming pool were also found there. "The department is probing tax evasion to the tune of a few crores against the official and his associates based in <keyword id="47181" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rishikesh">Rishikesh</keyword>," they claimed, without elaborating further. In an another search operation against a local body chairman in UP's Siddharthnagar district, the department detected tax evasion to the "tune of Rs 10 crore as per preliminary estimates." "The Chairman owns two petrol pumps and a gas agency and has been found to be allegedly diverting development grants for personal benefits," the official said. The department also raided the premises of a senior official in Noida and that of a UP road transport department officer based in Kanpur. "The Noida officer was found to have made unaccounted cash payments for purchase of immovable properties worth more than Rs 2 crore in the name of his spouse," the official said, adding he will soon be issued summons to join investigation. Investigation against the Kanpur-based officer is ongoing, the official added. The department, the official said, will undertake similar action against few more bureaucrats who are on its radar for quite sometime now. Over Rs 540 crore <keyword id="6356023" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Black-Money">black money</keyword> has been detected by the department in the last 15 days as part of its nation-wide operations to check tax evasion. These actions come after the closure of the <keyword id="3990808" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="pradhan-mantri-garib-kalyan-yojna">Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojna</keyword> (PMGKY) black money window on March 31. In the first fortnight of the new financial year that began on April 1, the taxman has conducted multiple search and survey operations on entry operators (agents using banking channels to launder funds), shell firms, government officials, real estate players and other sectors. As per an official data compiled till April 15, the department has carried out "over 250 searches and survey operations where the taxman raided at least 300 shell firms and detected more than Rs 540 crore of black money."

Tax officials conduct searches against bureaucrats; detect Rs 20 crore black money, luxury cars

Just ahead of Durga Puja, one of the most celebrated events in Bengal, the <keyword id="6354751" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Income-Tax">income tax</keyword> department today raided several places in <keyword id="6354925" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kolkata">Kolkata</keyword> and <keyword id="11004" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Siliguri">Siliguri</keyword>. The move came after the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Income+Tax">I-T department </a>received a couple of intimations from several agencies. 
 
The IT officials had seized cash in tunes of several crores stocked in the offices and business premises run y accused companies and agencies, reported The Economic Times. 
 
If reports are to be believed, the recovered cash was scheduled to be sent to the Middle Eastern countries through a huge Hawala network. Officials, further informed, "The racket used to be operated from Kolkata. We are yet to ascertain the motive of the <keyword id="6355008" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="money-laundering">money laundering</keyword>. And we are investigating into the specific destination of the money laundered in the Middle East countries. However, we have got information that the transactions were made to offshore accounts." 
 
Business ventures with illegal money transactions also came into light during the raids conducted today. Sources informed that retail shops with running a lottery business as another trade were also found. 
 
The searches are primarily being conducted at the offices located on Sarat Bose road in South Kolkata where <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Special+Task+Force">Special Task Force (STF)</a> of <keyword id="48501" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kolkata-police">Kolkata Police</keyword> is also present. 
 
The raids started early in the morning and other teams who actively joined-in, conducted the raids at the shops in Subhas market area in Siliguri. 
Image: indiatimes

Crores seized in I-T raid conducted in Kolkata and Siliguri

New Delhi, The <keyword id="65338" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Income-Tax-Department">Income Tax Department</keyword> on Monday carried out <keyword id="10539618" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="limited-verification-exercise">limited verification exercise</keyword> at the <keyword id="183089" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="office-premises">office premises</keyword> of the <keyword id="61966" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zee-group">Zee Group</keyword> and <keyword id="90593" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Larsen-and-Toubro">Larsen and Toubro</keyword> to verify into their bogus inputs about tax credit, official said. A senior IT official said, "There are no searches or raids but we are carrying out limited verification exercise at the offices of the <keyword id="147676" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Larsen">Larsen</keyword> and <keyword id="304986" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Toubro">Toubro</keyword> and Zee group as we had information that they had claimed bogus input tax credit." The official said that it is basically a follow up exercise and there is limited action on both the groups. "We are covering these group and the companies related to these groups on account of this bogus input taxes," the official added. The official, however, refused to share the details of the offices where the verification process is being carried out. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/top-stocks-to-watch-beml-hcl-tech-infosys-tech-mahindra-tcs-ril-tata-motors-hero-moto-tvs-and-others/articleshow/80089765.cms">Top stocks to watch — BEML, HCL Tech, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, TCS, RIL, Tata Motors Hero Moto, TVS, and others</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/checkout-upcoming-new-cars-in-year-2021/slidelist/80025993.cms">Upcoming new cars in India in 2021 of Maruti, Tata, MG, Audi</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/pongal-plus-election-dole-cash-rice-sugar-cashews-and-clothes-for-210-million-people-in-tamil-nadu/articleshow/80091546.cms">Pongal plus election dole: Cash, rice, sugar, cashews and clothes for 210 million people in Tamil Nadu</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/tata-motors-stock-surge-the-early-trading-hours-today-after-the-company-reported-a-21-increase-in-total-vehicle-sales/articleshow/80092876.cms">Tata Motors’ rallies over 3% as it outshines Mahindra and Maruti in December sales</a>

L&T and Zee Group accused of filing 'bogus' tax claims — verification underway

<div type="image" title="Reference Image" msid="92667834" hostid="261" sizebytes="7482" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Reference Image&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>In what seemed as a real inspiration taken from the Bollywood potboiler 'Special 26', over a dozen people, impersonating as Anti-Corruption and Income Tax officials, conducted a raid in the national capital, an official said on Monday. The police have so far managed to nab four of the accused, including one woman, who have been identified as Gurjant Singh (31), <keyword id="531011" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="navjot-singh" source="Orion">Navjot Singh</keyword> (30), Satpal Singh (28) and <keyword id="258701" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="gurpreet-kaur" source="Orion">Gurpreet Kaur</keyword> (30). Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara), R. Sathiyasundaram, said a PCR call was received at around 6 p.m. on Sunday, informing that around 15 'Income Tax officials' have conducted a raid without the police and seized the mobile phones of all the family members. When the the complainant asked the accused to show a search warrant, the accused threatened the victims by saying that they had guns. "The accused then started to open the cupboards, beds etc. on the ground floor and the first floor. Some of them even molested the complainant," the <keyword id="59859" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="dcp" source="Orion">DCP</keyword> said. The accused snatched the mobile phones of the family members, along with a hand bag containing one gold ornament and Rs 15,000 in cash, and fled from the spot. However, as the house occupants were shouting during the commotion, the neighbours heard their cries and informed the police. The police were able to nab four persons, while the rest of the accused fled from the spot. One Bolero car and ID cards of <keyword id="14367930" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="anti-corruption-foundation" source="Orion">Anti Corruption Foundation</keyword> of India were also recovered by the police. A search to nab the other accused is currently underway, the officer said. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/how-indian-auto-companies-like-bajaj-auto-tata-motors-hero-tvs-kia-performed-in-june-2022/slidelist/92657725.cms">Bajaj in top gear, Hero flat while Maruti declines – here’s how Indian auto cos performed in June 2022</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sustainability/news/bengaluru-delhi-hyderabad-and-mumbai-[%E2%80%A6]stainable-commercial-real-estate/articleshow/92656994.cmshttps://www.businessinsider.in/sustainability/news/bengaluru-delhi-hyderabad-and-mumbai-[%E2%80%A6]stainable-commercial-real-estate/articleshow/92656994.cms">Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai among top-20 cities in Asia-Pacific for sustainable commercial real estate</a>

Delhi cops nab Special 26-like scamsters who pose as Income Tax officials

Gandhinagar: The <keyword id="19895344" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Enforcement-Directorate" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Enforcement Directorate" meta.hostid="83" meta.entityid="Enforcement Directorate">Enforcement Directorate</keyword> on Thursday conducted multi-city searches in Gujarat in connection with a <keyword id="19899231" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="money-laundering" source="keywords">money laundering</keyword> case linked to a GST "fraud" in which eight people, including a journalist, were arrested recently by the state police, official sources said. About 23 premises in cities of Rajkot, Junagadh, Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar and Veraval were being raided by the federal agency after a case was filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. Premises linked to arrested journalist <keyword id="23517167" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mahesh-Langa" source="keywords">Mahesh Langa</keyword>, who works with <keyword id="21256671" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Hindu" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="The Hindu" meta.hostid="83" meta.entityid="The Hindu">The Hindu</keyword> newspaper, were also being covered. The money laundering case stems from an FIR of the Ahmedabad Police Crime Branch. The city Crime Branch registered the FIR against several persons and entities after getting a complaint from the Central GST over an alleged scam involving shell firms set up to defraud the government through <keyword id="23577822" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bogus-input-tax-credits" source="keywords">bogus input tax credits</keyword> and fraudulent transactions. Langa along with seven others was arrested after the Central GST found some suspicious transactions in bogus firms floated in the name of his wife and father using forged documents. After the registration of the FIR, the Crime Branch and Gujarat's Economic Offences Wing raided 14 locations across the state, including in Ahmedabad, Junagadh, Surat, Kheda and Bhavnagar. According to the Crime Branch, more than 200 fraudulently created firms worked across the country in an organised manner to defraud the government exchequer by availing bogus input tax credits and forged documents and identities were used to create these firms for tax evasion.

ED conducts raids in Gujarat in GST fraud case

New Delhi, The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday conducted raids against <keyword id="6357252" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="hero-motocorp" source="Orion">Hero Motocorp</keyword> executive chairperson <keyword id="87849" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="pawan-munjal" source="Orion">Pawan Munjal</keyword> and others as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said. The searches were carried out at premises located in Delhi and neighbouring Gurugram in accordance with provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The investigation stems from a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) complaint against a person, allegedly close to Munjal, who was investigated on charges of carrying undeclared foreign currency. The <keyword id="65338" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="income-tax-department" source="Orion">Income Tax Department</keyword> in March last year raided Munjal and his company <keyword id="734729" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="hero-motorcorp" source="Orion">Hero Motorcorp</keyword>, the country's largest two-wheeler automobiles manufacturer, as part of a tax evasion investigation. Hero MotoCorp became the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer in 2001, in terms of unit volume sales in a calendar year, and has maintained the title for the past 20 consecutive years. The company has presence across 40 countries spanning Asia, Africa, and South and Central America. PTI NES http://ptinews.com/images/pti.jpg "We bring the World to you" Disclaimer : This e-mail message may contain proprietary, confidential or legally privileged information for the sole use of the person or entity to whom this message was originally addressed. Please delete this e-mail, if it is not meant for you. MIN MIN

ED conducts raids against Hero Motors' Pawan Munjal

Officials of the <keyword id="65338" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Income-Tax-Department">Income Tax Department</keyword> are conducting raids at <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Tamil+Nadu+&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Tamil Nadu </a>Chief Secretary P. <keyword id="262564" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rama-Mohana-Rao">Rama Mohana Rao</keyword>'s residence in Anna Nagar, Chennai. 
 
Reportedly, the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=I-T+officials+&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">I-T officials </a>are conducting search and survey operation on 13 premises that belong to Rao and his family and associates in Chennai, Bengaluru and Chittoor. 
 
According to sources, the chief secretary was under the I-T scanner for quite some time. I-T officials are questioning Rao since morning 5:30 am. 
 The raids are being conducted in connection with his alleged links with sand mining baron <keyword id="3982146" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="j-shekar-reddy">J Shekar Reddy</keyword> and others. 
 Earlier, the I-T department had seized 177 kg of <keyword id="18712" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gold">gold</keyword>, cash worth Rs 34 crore in the new Rs 2000 denomination and Rs 96 crore in demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes from three businessmen - J. <keyword id="6734894" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Shekhar-Reddy">Shekhar Reddy</keyword>, Srinivasalu and Prem. 
 Both CBI and <keyword id="6357808" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Enforcement-Directorate">Enforcement Directorate</keyword> have registered cases against Shekhar Reddy and others for allegedly money laundering black money. 
 In a major shuffle after the re-election of AIADMK government in <keyword id="20154" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="tamil-nadu">Tamil Nadu</keyword>, Rao was appointed Chief Secretary in June this year. Rao, 1985 batch IAS officer, also holds additional charge of Vigilance Commissioner and Commissioner for Administrative reforms.

I-T officials raid Tamil Nadu chief secretary’s house in a money laundering case

<div class="image-container"><div class="image">AP</div></div>The Russia-U.S. relationship is the focus of a lot of attention this week, with President Vladimir Putin widely perceived <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/putin-trumps-white-house-plan-in-syria-2013-9">to have out-maneuvered President Barack Obama</a> and winning <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-vladimir-putin-became-the-chuck-norris-of-international-politics-2013-9">respect from unlikely corners</a>.
<keyword id="6354913" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Syria">Syria</keyword>, however, is not the only issue between <keyword id="6358826" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Russia">Russia</keyword> and the U.S. at the moment.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara announced Tuesday that authorities are seeking to seize luxury apartments and other property said to be used to launder funds by Russian criminal networks.
According to a 63-page lawsuit, Cyprus-based company Prevezon Holdings Ltd. and its New York affiliates <a href="http://www.courthousenews.com/2013/09/10/61014.htm">must hand over more than $230 million</a> for trying to launder tax fraud money with the purchase of real estate in the U.S. - notably the <a href="http://www.thealexanderny.com/load.html">Alexander Condominium building at 250 East 49th street</a>.
The case relates specifically to the notorious case of <keyword id="866518" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sergei-Magnitsky">Sergei Magnitsky</keyword>, the Moscow-based lawyer who was imprisoned and died mysteriously in jail after calling attention to an alleged Russian tax fraud scheme. 
Magnitsky had been working for Hermitage Capital, a fund managed by American Bill Browder. After Hermitage's Moscow offices were raided in 2007, Magnitsky began investigating and later testified that he had uncovered a huge scam by top police officials to embezzle $230 million in taxes from money that Hermitage Fund companies had paid in 2006.
Magnitsky alleged that the corrupt cops had used corporate seals and documents seized in the raid on Hermitage's Moscow office and set up fake companies under the same names, which then received a full tax rebate.
The story quickly turned tragic. In November 2008, Magnitsky himself was charged with tax evasion and taken to prison, before he <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-hermitage-saga-turns-tragic-as-fund-lawyer-dies-in-jail-2009-11">unexpectedly died in November 2009</a>. His death was<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/6608505/Russia-refuses-autopsy-for-anti-corruption-lawyer.html"> originally attributed to a an abdominal membrane rupture</a> before officials changed that to a heart attack.
Magnitsky is one of four witnesses in the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/alexander-perepilichnyy-dies-in-uk-2012-11">tax fraud who have died in mysterious circumstances</a>. While an official investigation into his death in 2009 yielded little results, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sergei-magnitsky-hermitage-capital-death-report-2011-11">last year a new report,</a> supported by Russia's Presidential human rights council, found that police torture appeared to have contributed to Magnitsky's death. Russian officials have never admitted any wrongdoing. Magnitsky himself was <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/sergei-magnitsky-a-picture-sums-up-the-trial-2013-7">later found guilty of tax fraud</a>.
Magnitsky's death and the events surrounding it significantly soured relations between the U.S. and Russia, effectively derailing Obama's ballyhooed "reset." Hermitage founder Browder lobbied tirelessly for harsher sanctions on the alleged perpetrators, and last year he succeeded in getting a <keyword id="6355470" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Law">law</keyword> passed that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/magnitsky-list-revealed-2013-4">effectively blacklisted officials </a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/magnitsky-list-revealed-2013-4">involved in the case</a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/magnitsky-list-revealed-2013-4"> from the U.S. and from holding American assets</a> - what has become known as the "Magnitsky Act."
Of course, Russia didn't take this lying down. In response to the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/magnitsky-list-revealed-2013-4">18 names on the U.S. list</a>, Russia <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russias-blacklist-of-us-officials-2013-4">released its own list</a> of US officials barred from Russia for alleged human rights abuses. The Russian Duma also responded by <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-duma-passes-us-adoption-ban-bill-2012-12">banning the adoption of Russian orphans by American families</a>.
Now U.S. authorities believe that Prevezon Holdings is part of the network of companies set up by suspects in the Magnitsky case. The action seems likely to be controversial, but U.S. authorities seem steadfast - despite what may be bad timing.
"As alleged, a Russian criminal enterprise sought to launder some of its billions in ill-gotten rubles through the purchase of pricey Manhattan real estate," Bharara said in a statement <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/10/us-russia-laundering-newyork-idUSBRE98914M20130910?feedType=RSS&amp;feedName=topNews&amp;utm_source=dlvr.it&amp;utm_medium=twitter&amp;dlvrit=992637">obtained by Reuters</a>. "While New York is a world financial capital, it is not a safe haven for criminals seeking to hide their loot, no matter how and where their fraud took place."

You Searched For "tax officials raid" and got 12 results

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Adam Taylor

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