Operation ‘White’

 

• More than a hundred Tax Agency officials, with the collaboration of the Mossos d’Esquadra, searched 23 points of sale and 10 offices belonging to 20 wholesale firms operating in Mercabarna
• The inspected firms declared a total annual turnover of more than €300 million but could be concealing more than 30% of their actual sales
• In accordance with previous investigations carried out, the companies had a computer system that allowed them to select at will the sales they decided to conceal in their accounts and tax returns

 

March 10, 2015.- This morning, the Tax Agency has launched a large-scale operation against black market sales at the Central Fish Market in Barcelona. The operation, named ‘White’, involves the launch of inspection actions involving a total of 20 wholesale fish trade firms operating in Mercabarna.

Within the framework of these actions, 23 points of sale and 10 offices belonging to the inspected firms were searched in an operation carried out by more a hundred Agency officials, with the collaboration of the Mossos d’Esquadra (the Catalan police force) to prepare and execute the entry and search operation in the investigated points of sale and companies.

In parallel with the actions in the companies' points of sale and offices, the Agency has started inspecting seven people linked to some of the firms.

According to the previous investigations started by the Tax Agency in mid-2014, the inspected companies could be in possession of a computer system that allowed then to deliberately and wilfully conceal a significant volume of their billing.

The sales data were introduced into the computer server of each of the firms via touch screens located at the points of sale. Via a series of specific codes, the system used by the inspected companies identified the sales that were hidden in their accounts and corresponding tax returns.

 

An anomalous profit margin of 1.5%

The inspected companies declared a joint annual billing of over €300 million, but the previous estimates derived from the investigations suggest that the concealed billing could represent over 30% of sales above those actually declared. The companies had abnormally low net profit margins on the sales volume, which rarely exceeded 1.5%.

In addition, various indications reveal that large amounts of cash were habitually handled by the heads of the companies affected by this investigation and that the wholesalers provided insufficient documentation of the sales receipts offered in their operations with clients.

During the previous investigation phase, the Tax Agency was able to observe that some of these receipts included special codes which were incorporated into the sales that were not going to be recorded in accounts.

The inspection was carried out by 106 Tax Agency officials, was coordinated by the Catalonia Regional Inspection Branch of the Tax Agency and its Computer Audit Team, and it has had the collaboration of staff of the National Fraud Investigation Bureau (ONIF) and the Tax Agency's Special Delegations of Valencia and Aragón.

The entry and search actions, which had court authorisation, are of an administrative nature, and therefore no arrests have been made.