Cheng Gong Ghana Limited, dealers in water factory and treatment machinery, was locked up by a taskforce of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) for selectively issuing Value Added Tax (VAT) invoices to clients.
The company also failed to release sales records to the GRA as required by law.
Operators of ten other businesses have been invited to the head office of GRA for engaging in VAT related offenses including not registering for VAT.
They are Betje Enterprise at Lashibi, Zee Nails and Beauty, NAS Wigs and Cosmetics, New Place Fabric, New Place Collections, Paul Right Shoes and Bags, Celebrity Style, Jolisaeko Enterprise, Lady Dodzi Enterprise, Zilla Home Trading Enterprise, all located along the Spintex Road, in Accra.
Manager of the Accra Central Area Enforcement Unit of GRA, Assistant Commissioner, Joseph Annan, who led the exercise, said the taskforce locked-up Cheng Gong Ghana Limited due to the failure of operators to release sales records for inspection.
He stated that the company would be re-opened if the managers avail themselves to the authorities for scrutiny, and pay the required penalties associated with VAT irregularities.
Mr Annan also said that record books of the other businesses were confiscated to enable the GRA conduct proper checks and assessment of the erring businesses.
He said actions of the operators were in violation of section 41 of the VAT Act, which require businesses to register and issue VAT invoice at all time.
Mr Annan again said that the businesses, which had registered for VAT, per checks by the GRA, were not issuing VAT invoice, thereby evading the payment of VAT.
He noted that the arrested persons would be handed over to the police for investigation and prosecution.
He said that officers of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service would take the statement of those arrested after which the preemptive assessment would be established and the businesses would be required to pay immediately.
“After that the business would be recommended for full audit while the police continue with its investigations,” he said.
Mr Annan explained that the Legal Department of the GRA was steadily building the prosecution dockets of all the arrested business operators for prosecution to commence.
The Authority, he noted, would conduct an assessment of the financial and transaction records of the businesses, and conduct a reconciliation to determine the revenue loss as a result of the infraction.
He said the businesses would be made to refund the revenue as well as the penalty, which was set at GH¢50, 000 as required by law.
As part of efforts to promote voluntary compliance, he stated that the GRA was undertaking regular visits in order to ensure that businesses already checked comply with the measures.
BY CLAUDE NYARKO ADAMS