PROMINENT Arusha businessman Samwel Lema was yesterday brought before the Kisutu Resident Magistrate’s Court in Dar es Salaam to face a number of criminal changes jointly with another prominent businessman, Mohammed Mustafa Yusufali, popularly known as ‘Mzee wa Milioni 7 kwa Dakika’ (Man who makes 7m/- per minute).
However, the prosecution could not read
the charges against them because they were brought to the court after
working hours. The two prominent businessmen were returned back to the
custody of the Prevention and Combatting of Corruption Bureau (PCCB)
until today.
It is a second case for Yusufali as he
is currently facing 199 counts relating to tax evasion of over 15bn/-
alongside four others. Earlier yesterday, the court handed back the
prime suspect (Mohamed Mustafa Yusufali), to the PCCB for further
grilling in the 15bn/- evading tax case. Principal Resident Magistrate
Huruma Shaidi gave such order after taking into consideration a request
presented before him by the prosecution, led by Senior State Attorney
Mutalemwa Kishenyi and PCCB lawyer Leonard Swai.
The prosecution informed the court that
PCCB needed more time to interrogate Yusufali, alias Mohamedali, alias
Choma, alias Jamalii, because he was facing other allegations. The
prosecution team could not give more details but promised to return him
immediately after the session. Earlier, the prosecution briefed the
court on the developments of the case, including the status on
investigations, saying such assignment was going on.
They, therefore, requested the court to
grant more time for them to complete the investigation. The magistrate
granted the request and adjourned the matter to August 5, for another
mention.
Yusufali is charged alongside
Alloyscious Gonzaga Mandago, Isaack Wilfred Kasanga, Taherali Sujjauddin
Taherari and Mohamed Seif Kabula with 199 counts. They include forgery,
uttering false documents, money laundering, occasioning loss to a
specified authority and evading tax of over 15bn/-.
They are alleged to have committed the
offences at different times between 1995 and 2016 in the city. The
prosecution told the court that the accused persons forged several
certificates of incorporation for about 17 different companies, 15 among
them by Yusufali alone, showing that such companies are limited
companies legally incorporated in Tanzania, while it was untrue.
The prosecution alleged that between
January 2008 and January 2016 in Dar es Salaam, being a director
concerned with management of affairs of his company, Farm Plant Limited,
with a view to fraudulently evading tax, Yusufali submitted to the
Commissioner of Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) false returns.
As a result, according to the
prosecution, Mohamed Mustafa Yusufali evaded Value Added Tax (VAT)
amounting to 15,645,944,361/-. It is alleged further that within the
same period in the city, by reason of his willful acts of making and
submitting false returns to the TRA Commissioner General (CG), Mohamed
Mustafa Yusufali caused the government to suffer a pecuniary loss of
15,645,944,361/-, which ought to have been paid as VAT.
The prosecution told the court that
knowing and fraudulently, Yusufali uttered to TRA, Kinondoni Regional
Tax Office, certificates for 15 companies to show that they were limited
companies registered as taxpayers.
The court heard further that on diverse
period in the city, with intent to defraud, Yusufali made several tax
invoices bearing different numbers and value added tax (VAT) returns to
show that Farm Plant Limited purchased from Blue Arrow Tanzania Limited
commodities worth billions of shillings.
All the accused persons were charged
with an offence of money laundering allegedly committed between March
2011 and January 2016 within the city of Dar es Salaam. Being persons
responsible with management and operations of Superior Financing
Solution Limited, the accused persons allegedly concealed establishment
of the true nature, source and movement of money amounting to
1,895,885,000/-.
The prosecution alleged that the accused
persons advanced the said amount as loans to various persons and
receiving repayments, while at the time of advancing and receiving such
repayments they knew or ought to have known that money was proceeds of
predicate offences of forgery and tax evasion
No comments :
Post a Comment