ShareThisMANILA – The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) filed last week tax evasion charges before the Department of Justice (DOJ) against former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) comptrollers Carlos F. Garcia and his wife Clarita, Jacinto Ligot and his wife Erlinda, and Ligot’s brother-in-law Edgardo Tecson Yambao.
BIR Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares said the respondents were all charged for their “willful attempt to evade or defeat tax and willful failure to file” their Income Tax Returns (ITRs).
The case against retired Maj. Gen. Garcia and his wife was the third filed against them. The first two cases of similar nature involving taxable years 2002 and 2003 are pending with the DOJ.
Investigation by the BIR of the Garcia couple for probable tax evasion cases showed that they failed to file their ITR for 2004. They also failed to declare with the BIR their income in 2004 amounting to P273,235,534.08 which they used to acquire properties and to make deposits in several bank accounts and financial instruments.
Investigation showed that in 2004, Garcia, by himself or through his children, who were minors with no visible means of income, deposited P102,765,849.35 in several bank accounts and financial instruments.
In the same year, Garcia, through his son Ian Carl, who was then a minor with no visible means of income, also purchased a property in Iloilo for P459,609.
Also in 2004, his wife Clarita, or through their children who were minors with no visible means of income, deposited in several bank accounts and financial instruments the amount of P170,010,075.73.
The total income tax liability of the Garcia couple was pegged at P235,831,205.44, inclusive of increments wherein P89,064,648.01 was for Gen. Garcia and P146,766,557.43 for Clarita.
The BIR also investigated retired Lt. Gen. Ligot and his wife for probable tax evasion cases, taking cue from the publicized documents and information from the Senate public hearings on the multimillion-peso AFP fund anomaly.
Investigation showed that Gen. Ligot failed to file his ITR for taxable year 2001, and spouse Erlinda for taxable years 2001 to 2004.
The couple also failed to declare with the BIR income amounting to P41,854,181.57 in 2001; P103,601,281.22 in 2002; P165,367,784.39 in 2003; and P148,955,700.14 in 2004 which they used to acquire several properties and make several bank deposits and investments.
The Ligot couple owed the government a combined deficiency income tax for taxable years 2001 to 2004 amounting to P428,077,547.54 wherein P290,241,919.79 was for Gen. Ligot and P137,835,627.75 was for Erlinda.
Yambao, the alleged “dummy” of Gen. Ligot in the AFP anomaly, failed to file his ITR for taxable years 1999, and 2001 to 2005 despite making several deposits of substantial amounts in several banks and acquiring properties of substantial amounts, including two condominium units and two Subaru Foresters during the same period.
For the six-year period, Yambao was assessed a total deficiency income tax in the aggregate amount of P285,775,710.21