Xing Wang Ji roasted meat wholesaler convicted of tax evasion

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Xing Wang Ji roasted meat wholesaler convicted of tax evasion

Published on Nov 21, 2014 8:52 PM

Roasted and barbecued meats wholesaler Xing Wang Ji was convicted in court on Friday for failing to declare to the taxman sales income of about $3.5 million between 2005 and 2007. One of the directors, Peh Tian Poh, was convicted for assisting the company to evade tax, he was sentenced to six weeks' jail and ordered to pay about $355,000 in taxes and penalty. -- PHOTO: ST FILE

By Melody Zaccheus

SINGAPORE - Roasted and barbecued meats wholesaler Xing Wang Ji was convicted in court on Friday for failing to declare to the taxman sales income of about $3.5 million between 2005 and 2007.

It also convicted for under-declaring output tax totalling more than $220,000 in its goods and services tax (GST) returns.

The court has ordered the company to pay a fine of $42,000. One of its directors, Peh Tian Poh, convicted of assisting the company to evade tax, was sentenced to six weeks' jail and ordered to pay about $355,000 in taxes and penalty.

Xing Wang Ji was a GST-registered business. However, the company allowed customers who had expressed intention to avoid paying GST on their purchases, to do so.

Investigators found that the company issued non-standard sales invoices to such customers. These omitted essential particulars such as the company's name, address, GST-registration number as well as the amount of GST collected.

These transactions were recorded separately in exercise books. These non-standard sales records were not handed over to the company's part-time book-keeper, who prepared the accounts for submission to the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore.

Peh, who was responsible for issuing some of the non-standard invoices to customers, was involved in making records of sales transactions in the exercise books, mainly during the Chinese New Year period and the Chinese Seventh Lunar Month Festival.

The authority said in a release that it is "reviewing the appropriate action" to be taken against Xing Wang Ji's other director who was involved in the tax evasion.