Turkish "biscuit king" arrested in Romania for tax evasion

Prosecutors from the Romanian Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) held Turkish businessman Halil Bulut for 24 hours, on charges of tax evasion, money laundering, and setting up an organized crime group. Bulut, nicknamed the "biscuit king" in Romania, is the owner of Rostar, one of the biggest local producers of biscuits and crackers. Five other people were detained in this case, namely Raluca Anamaria Blaj – the company’s referent accountant, Ioan Todoran- technical director, Mihai Gheorghe – unit head/deputy in the transport sector, Cornel Costea – chief engineer, and Imad Ali. Prosecutors say that Halil Bulut, Raluca Anamaria Blaj, and Ioan Tudoran set up an organized crime group between 2011 and 2015, which was used to include false documents in Rostar’s accountancy books, so that the company would avoid paying taxes to the state. The members of the crime group were issuing fictitious invoices according to which the company had acquired goods and services from ghost providers. These purchases were then registered in Rostar’s accountancy books, to reduce the company’s tax obligations to the state budget. Rostar recorded in the accounting documents and other legal documents total expenses of EUR 16.13 million, consisting of fictitious purchases of goods and services coming from 22 companies, causing a damage of EUR 3.17 million to the state budget, which represents the VAT deducted illegally, according to DIICOT. “The invoices proving the unreal commercial operations served as justification for the wiring of 372 payments from Rostar’s accounts into the accounts of the ghost providers listed above, which totaled RON 65.4 million (EUR 14.53 million). The amounts of money resulted from tax evasion were thus subjected to a process of laundering, being withdrawn in cash or, where appropriate, successively transferred into the accounts of Romanian and Asian companies. Of the total amount, RON 58.66 million (EUR 13 million), obtained from money laundering, were reintegrated into the legal financial circuit by crediting SC Rostar SA,” reads the DIICOT statement. A total of 262 loan agreements signed by the manager Halil Bulut were registered in the company’s accountancy books between 2011 and 2015. The prosecutors also imposed precautionary measures amounting to EUR 13.63 million. Turkish businessman Halil Bulut and the other five defendants could spend the next 30 days in jail if the Court approves the prosecutors’ request in this sense. In 2015, Rostar SA had a turnover of EUR 8.5 million and EUR 800,000 losses. The company had losses of EUR 8 million between 2012 and 2015. Rostar has some 380 employees, according to data from the Finance Ministry. Controversial energy trading company in Romania charged with tax evasion Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com