Israeli Businessman Sentenced to 44 Months for Tax Fraud
Translated & summarized from Maariv by baba
Avner Aluk, owner of Sagiv Fire Protection Technologies, was sentenced to 44 months in prison for tax fraud involving 139 fictitious invoices totaling 5.75 million shekels. The court found he used nominal managers to hide his involvement and considered his prior tax offense convictions. Aluk also received a suspended sentence and a fine, while his company was given a symbolic penalty.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Avner Aluk sentenced to 44 months for tax fraud using 139 fictitious invoices.
- His company, Sagiv Fire Protection Technologies, illegally deducted 5.75 million shekels in input taxes.
- The court cited Aluk's attempts to hide behind appointed managers and his criminal past.
- Aluk failed to return the illegally deducted funds during the legal proceedings.
- He received a 10-month suspended sentence and a 100,000 shekel fine.
Avner Aluk, owner of Sagiv Fire Protection Technologies, has been sentenced to 44 months in prison after being convicted of tax offenses. The court determined that Aluk attempted to conceal his involvement by appointing managers who acted under his direction. His sentence was aggravated due to his prior criminal record for tax offenses and his failure to return the misappropriated funds.
Between 2012 and 2015, Aluk's company received 139 fictitious invoices from five different companies. These were included in the company's tax filings, allowing for the illicit deduction of input taxes. Aluk was convicted of 35 counts of unlawfully deducting input taxes.
The indictment, filed in 2018, revealed Aluk's attempts to obscure his role by appointing various individuals to management positions. However, the trial established that these managers were merely figureheads acting on Aluk's instructions, and he was the dominant figure in the offenses.
The court took a harsh view of Aluk's past convictions for tax offenses, for which he had previously served jail time. It was also noted that he made no effort to rectify the financial discrepancies throughout the legal proceedings. Aluk's arguments for leniency, including comparing his sentence to another party involved and citing the time elapsed since the offenses, were rejected by the court. The judge pointed out that Aluk himself had requested numerous delays, contributing to the lengthy process.
In addition to the prison sentence, Aluk was given a 10-month suspended sentence and fined 100,000 shekels, with an alternative of an additional ten months imprisonment. The company itself received a nominal fine.
