KPK Urges Lulu Group to Pay $5.6m in Tax Arrears Amid Bribery Scandal
Jakarta. The national antigraft agency said on Wednesday (23/11) that a bribery investigation into a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-based Lulu Group International does not void the company's obligation to pay its $5.6 million in tax arrears.
E.K. Prima Ekspor Indonesia president director Rajesh Rajamohanan Nair was nabbed along with Handang Soekarno of the Directorate General of Taxation in a sting operation in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Monday evening (21/11). Officers seized $148,500 in cash from Rajesh.
Rajesh allegedly paid off the tax inspector to illegally resolve the tax issue. Both men have been named suspects in the case.
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Saut Situmorang urged the company to pay its obligations before the end of the tax amnesty program.
"What can we do after the tax amnesty program ends? So, before it's over, the tax arrears must be paid. If necessary, they will have to sell all their assets," Saut told reporters.
He also urged the tax office to calculate how much E.K. Prima Ekspor Indonesia owes the government.
The initial investigation indicates that the confiscated $148,500 was part of $445,000 Rajesh had promised Handang.
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