German tax authorities to launch new wave of tax evasion probes - report

German tax authorities to launch new wave of tax evasion probes - report

FRANKFURT (Thomson Financial) - German tax authorities will in the coming two weeks launch a new wave of 20 separate tax evasion probes, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported, citing an unnamed investigator.

The probe, which will concern mostly people in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, will focus on family foundations which are suspected of having been used to hide between 10 million euros and 20 million euros of embezzled money, it said.

Since the Easter holidays, there have been about 30 raids, with 120 residences and offices searched, the newspaper said.

Tax evasion recently came into the spotlight in Germany as authorities launched a country-wide tax evasion probe, netting more than 100 suspects including Deutsche Post World Net AG.'s chief executive Klaus Zumwinkel.

Most of these cases related to Germans avoiding payment of taxes by shifting funds to the alpine tax haven Liechtenstein.

Sueddeutsche Zeitung said authorities have recovered about 500 million euros from about 200 people who turned themselves in.

Another 230 people not related to the Liechtenstein affair have turned themselves in to authorities after neglecting to pay taxes, it said.

Bochum prosecutors plan to start bringing charges against suspects in late summer and will likely bring charges against Zumwinkel this autumn. maria.sheahan@thomsonreuters.com mas/cw