This archive report was first published on 25 November 2019.
On Friday, a Nairobi court charged a businessman with five counts of tax fraud worth millions of shillings. The charges include being part of a 'missing trader' tax evasion scheme, where a taxpayer uses multiple registered business names for fictitious invoicing.
David Ndiritu, the sole proprietor of Aberdare Solutions, denied all the charges. He is accused of using fictitious invoices from Bosco Enterprises and Davron Petroleum Ltd to illegally claim VAT refunds of Sh14 million and Sh6.6 million respectively.
The offences were committed between 2015 and last year. Ndiritu is also accused of failing to declare earnings in Value-Added Taxes (VAT) amounting to Sh133 million, hence reducing VAT liability by about Sh21.5 million.
He appeared before Milimani Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku and was released on a bond of Sh500,000 or alternative cash bail of Sh100,000. The case will be mentioned on December 10.
As part of its efforts to bridge a widening revenue gap amid a biting cash crunch in government, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has intensified the clampdown on tax evaders in recent months.
