The two main suspects are managing partners of a Spanish company that is building a luxury shopping center on the island of Tenerife.
They used tax-accounting engineering, shell companies, trust offices and foreign investment funds, financing themselves with funds originating in Russia that they sent to Tenerife with tax havens and zero-tax territories.
The homes of those investigated and two commercial companies in Tenerife have been searched, and numerous economic documentation, cash and telephone and computer devices were seized.
Joint operation of the Civil Guard and the Tax Agency
Tenerife has arrested four people, of Russian and Spanish nationality, who have evaded their tax and fiscal obligations before the Spanish Public Treasury.
They are charged with the crimes of money laundering, crimes against the Public Treasury, unfair administration, document falsification and identity theft. These people used tax-accounting engineering, foreign investment companies and funds, shell companies and trust offices to finance themselves with funds originating in Russia that they sent to Tenerife through tax havens and zero-tax territories, evading all fiscal responsibility and tax.
This investigation began at the beginning of 2018 when the Civil Guard detected that a Spanish company had previously been financing itself through private loans without elevating them to public loans granted by citizens of Russian origin. Previously, a few months earlier, this company had purchased the land of an old nightclub located in Tenerife with the aim of converting it into a luxury shopping center.
Use of tax havens and zero tax territories
The joint development of the investigation carried out by the Civil Guard and the State Tax Administration Agency (AEAT) revealed that this Spanish company, to begin its reconversion project, had to resort to investment funds and foreign capital companies. Russian and money of dubious origin in order to obtain the necessary financing. To do this, they resorted to financing sources through nationalized companies in Australia, Luxembourg and the British Virgin Islands, the latter place where one of the lending companies was linked to a trust office, associated with a multitude of “vehicular” type shell companies. ”.
Through the use of these shell companies they would have obtained mortgage loans for amounts exceeding 23 million euros, some of them with interest of up to 25%.
In turn, the economic analysis carried out to date has been able to determine the use of a circuit for the introduction of funds in Spain, specifically in Tenerife, compatible with the phases of money laundering in accordance with the criteria established by the Commission for the Prevention of Money Laundering. Money Laundering. Thanks to the practice of a “tax engineering” system, these operations were subsequently managed to become, with the aim of ultimately avoiding the payment of taxes to the tax administration.
With this investigation, of an economic-financial and fiscal nature, it has been possible to clarify a business network that for years would have evaded all fiscal and tax responsibility to the detriment of the Public Treasury.
Exploitation phase of the Isla Sorna operation
In total, six searches have been carried out, four of them in the homes of those investigated and two in commercial companies in Tenerife, involving numerous economic documentation (mainly accounting and billing), cash, as well as telephone, computer and electronic devices. .
Furthermore, the Court leading the investigation agreed to preventively block and dispose of movable and immovable property, for an approximate total amount of 45 million euros, to guarantee possible civil and pecuniary liabilities.
The operation has been developed jointly by the Information Group of the Santa Cruz de Tenerife Civil Guard Command and the State Tax Administration Agency (AEAT), having been directed by the Court of Instruction no. 3 of Arona in coordination with the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
In the research phase, there has been support and collaboration from the Information Headquarters: Special Central Unit n°3 (UCE3), Economic Research Subgroup (SIE) and Technical Area. In addition, the Citizen Security Command Unit (USECIC), the Civil Guard Air Service, the Information Section of the Canary Islands Zone, the SEPRONA of Playa de las Américas and Citizen Security of Playa de Las Américas have participated in this exploitation phase. the Americas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.