Fed: Man charged with $500,000 input tax credits fraud

AAP General News (Australia)
04-04-2001
Fed: Man charged with $500,000 input tax credits fraud

CANBERRA, April 4 AAP - A New South Wales man has been charged over a $500,000-scam
involving input tax credits under the new tax system, Australian Federal Police (AFP)
said today.

Canberra-based officers arrested the 49-year-old Cooma man at the nearby town of Williamsdale
late yesterday, following a joint investigation by the AFP and the Australian Taxation
Office.

An AFP spokesman said the man had been charged with six counts of defrauding the commonwealth
and one count of organised fraud.

The arrest followed a three-month joint investigation code named Operation Panther.

The operation was set up to investigate the fraudulent gain of input tax credits under
the new tax system through the use of a large number of fictitious identities, the spokesman
said.

An input tax credit is an amount claimed by businesses for the GST included in the
price of goods bought for their businesses.

Search warrants have been issued on two properties near Cooma.

The man is due to appear in Queanbeyan Local Court this morning.

AAP dep/mg/de

KEYWORD: CREDITS

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