JOHANNESBURG, July (ANA) – Former Steinhoff International Holdings NV chairman Christo Wiese has been caught up in a case in which the South African Revenue Service claims that a law firm at which he was an executive, ENS, helped multinational oil company Tullow shift about R3.9 billion in assets out of the country to dodge taxes.
A report by investigative journalist unit amaBhungane published on Thursday said papers filed in the Western Cape high court show that SARS is pursuing Wiese and two other people personally for R217 million as part of a R3.7 billion tax claim based on Tullow’s “restructuring ”.
AmaBhungane said ENS tax head Peter Dachs denied that SARS alleges any tax evasion “in respect of the merits” of a long-running dispute.
The report says SARS is claiming that ENS restructured Tullow, leaving it in charge of a holding company in South Africa that was largely a tax shell — which the law firm then sold to Wiese.
“When SARS came knocking, Wiese allegedly moved assets out of the company and sold it to a former ENS executive who told SARS there was no cash or assets left to claim,” amaBhungane reported.
It said the case was due to be heard in court next month.
In April Wiese, one of South Africa's richest men, lodged a R59 billion claim against Steinhoff over cash investments made by his Titan Group of companies in Steinhoff in 2015 and 2016, after he lost billions of rand when the retailer's share price crashed last year after revelations of accounting irregularities.
SARS said in a brief statement that "SARS is not in a position to divulge specific information and details on the affairs of taxpayers. SARS is bound by Chapter 6 of the Tax Administration Act, 2011, dealing with confidentiality of information, and more specifically Section 69 of the Act, which provides for the secrecy of taxpayer information."
"This includes investigations into taxpayers or traders," SARS said.
- African News Agency (ANA)
Additional reporting - Algoa FM
