Jail time for Bay of Plenty tax evader
A Bay of Plenty woman has been jailed for two years and three months for avoiding more than $160,000 of tax.
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Bay of Plenty farmer Lisa Lee Hilda Lamelangi has been jailed for tax evasion.
But IRD is unable to say if it is specifically targetting tax-evading farmers.
The 37-year-old Katikati woman was sentenced in the Tauranga District Court to two years and three months in prison after avoiding PAYE, GST and income tax payments to the tune of $167,000.
Lamelangi and her husband registered their Matamoana partnership in August 1999 but wound the company up nearly two years later, leaving debts of $24,110.
That sum was written off under hardship provisions.
But three years later, the couple issued invoices under the Matamoana partnership totalling $623,667, despite it not being registered for GST or income tax.
"When IRD spoke to Lamelangi, she admitted the facts and said she'd used most of the unpaid tax to pay back a $60,000 loan and sent some back to families in Tonga," group manager of assurance Patrick Goggin said.
Blair Cunningham
Thu, 28 Jun 2012
Thu, 28 Jun 2012
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Jail time for Bay of Plenty tax evader
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