Tax officials who falsified data detained

A criminal case has been initiated against tax officials accused of falsifying data, according to a report from the State Security Service.

As part of operational-search measures to combat corruption and economic crimes, the State Security Service uncovered that several tax officials had falsified data in the “Stability Rating” program in exchange for material benefits. They artificially inflated the financial indicators of 18 business entities and removed their risk classification, which led to the illegal refund of a total of 82 billion sums in negative value-added tax (VAT) from the state budget.

The Investigation Department of the State Security Service has launched a criminal case under Articles 167 (Embezzlement) and 209 (Abuse of Office) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

In particular, in connection with the illegal refund of 5.5 billion sums of negative VAT to an LLC engaged in timber imports, two employees of the Tax Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, along with the director and accountant of the LLC and two unofficial heads, were identified as suspects and taken into custody as a preventive measure.

Search operations conducted at 16 locations associated with the suspects resulted in the procedural seizure of the following items:

- \$79,000 in cash
- 161 million sums
- 3 LI9 electric cars
- 2 Gentra cars
- 1 Nexia 3 car
- 1,268 units of TEREA electronic cigarette sticks
- 27 electronic keys
- Several company seals, computers, and mobile phones

The investigation is ongoing, and further inquiries are being conducted into the illegally obtained funds by the remaining business entities involved.

It should be recalled that earlier, a tax inspector in the Khorezm region and an employee of a forensic center in the Kashkadarya region were caught accepting bribes.