TAXATION EVADED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23175, 22 October 1938, Page 12

TAXATION EVADED

FALSE INCOME RETUBNS GREEK PARTNERSHIP TOTAL OF £4OOO NOT REVEALED [BY TELEGRAPH —OWS ' CORRESPONDENT] GISBORNE, Friday "Here we have a case of a man taking money regularly from the till and secreting it," said Mr. E. L. Walton, S.M., in the Police Court this morning, when Zakris. and Zakris, a ■ Wairoa fish merchant partnership, appeared before him and pleaded not guilty to five charges of wilfully making false returns under the Land and Income Tax Act from the year ending March 31, 1934, to March 1938. Fines and costs totalled £6B ss, the defendants being fined £lO and costs, £3 13s, on each information. The prosecution was conducted by Mr, J. G. Nolan and Mr. L. T. Burnard appeared for the defendant partnership. Mr. Nolan explained that the business was carried on by brothers, Anthony Zakris and George Zakrij. When an officer approached the partners he was told that they operated only one account for the business ;imd denied having any fixed deposits, however, there were certain the pass book and the partners Reluctantly admitted they had another private banking account. Further Accounts Revealed The officer was still not satisfied, and then they admitted having Post Office Savings Bank accounts, money being taken from the till and being deposited. As the inspector was still unable to account for all entries' he interviewed them again and tvas told that thev had a further account in another banking house. He was able then to account for practically all the money movements in the partnership and obtained an admission that at times they each took amounts up to £ls a week and those amounts were ' not shown in income tax returns. The inspector learned also that £2OOO had been sent to Greece and that in the period covered by the informations there was a shortage in returns of over £4OOO and that the loss to the department was £492. Submissions for Defence Mr. Burnard submitted that the partners did not make false, returns wilfully or negligently. The defendants took some steps to make accurate returns by placing figures in the hand* '* of their solicitors, and as far as they knew the Crown had access to the amount of money held by them in the Post Office Savings Bank. One of the defendants, Anthony Zakris, gave evidence that he came to New Zealand from Athens in 1923 and then had no knowledge of English, j When it came to making up returns | he said his solicitors asked the brothers | questions about income and expendi- ! ture. and he thought that the figures supplied to the solicitors from the pass , J I book were correct. The solicitor did not '• ask them anything about the Post * Office account or other accounts. Before the fines were imposed Mr. Bur nard told the Court that his clients had several obligations to meet and asked that the penalty should be as light as possible.