In a case involving value-added tax (VAT) fraud, Hungarian authorities have taken crypvtocurrency worth more than $1 million from a criminal group. The police carried out 28 searches, detained three suspects, and recovered numerous items connected to the organization. The stolen digital currency was moved to a wallet under the jurisdiction of the Hungarian tax department.
Cryptocurrency Found in Tax Fraud Case
The National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary (NAV) reported on Wedvnesday that it had recovered cryptocurrencies from a criminal gang that had avoided paying value-added tax (VAT) in the amount of eight million Hungarian forints ($8.2 million).
The Western Transdanubian Criminal Directorate, Merkur Deployment Unit, and NAV commandos simultaneously conducted 28 raids, apprehended the suspects, and recovered nearly 420 million forints ($1.15 million) in cryptocurrency and unlawfully acquired assets. The NAV said that the confiscated coins were transferred to a specifically made crypto wallet that it controls, but did not provide any further information.
According to the tax office, members of the criminal gang purchased smartphones, tablets, solar panels, and other technological goods from a number of EU nations. The NAV stated that they created shell businesses that changed every several months in order to avoid paying VAT after importing the goods, and that doing so allowed the fraudsters to sell electronic gadgets to multiple wholesalers and resellers at advantageous prices.
More than HUF 3 billion in VAT was saved by selling information communication gadgets imported from the EU through a bogus invoicing chain, according to the Hungarian tax office (Google translation). The NAV further mentioned that some of the criminally obtained money was invested in cryptocurrencies.
Along with the cryptocurrencies, assets worth more than 500,000 forints were seized, including automobiles, cash, houses, and bank accounts. Three members of the criminal group have reportedly been detained, according to the NAV.
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