Picking up where Versace left off, the flamboyant duo of Dolce and Gabbana, popularized Italian fashion even further.
Known for their sometime outrageous and garish fashions, the duo have built themselves an empire to rival the most famous and most profitable fashion houses in the world.
But it seems they did not want to part with any of their money, and they, like many in the Italian commercial sector had found a way to hide their profit and avoid taxes.
They did so by building a shell company called Gado, based in Luxembourg, where all profits were diverted specifically to avoid the high tax rates imposed by the Italian tax code.
The judge however, in the trial of the glamorous duo, was not so star struck. He sentenced both to 2 and 1/2 years in jail for failing to pay the Italian government 1.3 billion dollars in back taxes. That is a staggering amount of evasion, even for a famous brand.
The money refers to a period between 2004 and 2005.
The duo are being tried together with five other people who have contributed to the tax evasion crime. The sentence and prosecution of the case followed an investigation in 2007 which was completed in 2010.
Source : France 24/ 5.29.13
No comments:
Post a Comment