The federal government has initiated criminal proceedings against a Chinese firm, SSL Industry Company Limited, its managing director, Liu Qiang; a director, Shi Shual and a Nigerian accountant, Babatunde Ayeni over alleged tax fraud.
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In a four-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), SSL Industry, Qiang, Shual and Ayeni were alleged to have evaded the payment of the Value Added Tax (VAT) between estimated N1,217,789,058 by falsifying audited account statements/income tax returns.
The charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/30/2024 reads: “That you SSL Industry Company Limited, Liu Qiang (being the Managing Director of SSL Industry Company Limited), and Shi Shuai (being the director of SSL Industry Company Limited) between 2019 to 2021, in Abuja, being obliged by Section 16(1)(a) of the Value Added Tax Act, failed to deduct and pay to the Federal Inland Revenue Service within 30 days from the date the Vave Added Tax became due for the deduction, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 40 of the Federal Inland Revenue Service Act, 2007 and punishable under section 40 of the same Act.
*That you SSL Industry Company Limited (being In the business of the sale of aluminum coll), liu Qiang (being the Managing Director of SSL Industry Company Limited), and Shi Shual (being the director of SSL Industry) between 2019 to 2021, in Abuja, evaded the payment of the Value Added Tax in the sum of NI,217,789, 058 to the Federal Inland Revenue Service, and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 26 of the Value Added Tax Act, 2004 and punishable under Section 26 of the same Act.
*That you SSL Industry Company Limited, Liu Qiang (being the Managing Director of SSL Industry Company Limited), Shi Shuai (being the director of SSL Industry Company Limited) and Babatunde Ayeni (trading under the name and style of Babatunde Ayeni & Co) sometime in 2021, in Abuja, made, signed and delivered to the Federal Inland Revenue Service an audited financial statement, which is false as to the object of the company and the turnover and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 42(1) of the Federal Inland Revenue Service Act, 2007 and punishable under section 42 (3) of the same Act.
*That you Babatunde Ayeni (trading under the name and style of Babatunde Ayeni & Co), sometime in 2021, in Abuja, aided SSL Industry Company Limited to make or deliver a false audited financial statement/income tax returns under the Companies Income Tax Act and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 94 (1}(b) of the Companies Income Tax Act, 2007 and punishable under section 94 of the same Act.
At the mention of the case on Wednesday, the lawyer to the EFCC, Chiamaka Njoku said her client was still exploring moves to apprehend the defendants.
She prayed the court for an adjournment till a later date, a request Justice Inyang Ekwo was uncomfortable with.
Justice Ekwo noted that the prosecution gave similar excuses when the case last came up.
The judge, however, elected to give the prosecution the last chance to produce the defendants in court, failing which he threatened to make the appropriate order as prescribed by the law.
Justice Ekwo asked Njoku to suggest a date that was sufficient to enable the EFCC to produce the defendants in court, following which the lawyer to the prosecution suggested October 22, which the judge adopted.
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