Russia has accused Deloitte and Touche, the international accounting and consulting giant, of tax evasion and has opened a criminal investigation into the matter, the interior ministry said Saturday.
Deloitte and Touche CIS, the regional office of the world-wide giant in Russia, is accused of evading "large sums" of taxes, said a statement posted on the ministry's website.
"Managers of Deloitte and Touche CIS and a Cyprus company Deloitte and Touche Regional Consulting Services Limited created a scheme to include unjustified costs into accounts, which led to a concealment of revenues and large sums of tax evasion," it said. Police are investigating "the role of each... manager in the tax crime and the amount of ensuing damage to the government."
Alexander Dumnov, a partner in the Moscow office, told the Kommersant daily that the ministry had not yet officially notified the firm of the charges.
The case appeared to be the first time that Russian authorities have targeted a Western firm in their months-long campaign against tax evasion ahead of the March 14 presidential election, due to be swept by incumbent Vladimir Putin, who has waged a battle against big business.
The Yukos oil giant has been the object of most inquiries, with the tax ministry accusing it on December 30 of underpaying more than three billion dollars in taxes for 2000 alone by misusing domestic offshore zones.
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