The Bureau of Internal Revenue has asked the the Department of Justice to criminally prosecute officials of a hospital in Olongapo City in Zambales for allegedly failing to remit withholding taxes worth over P15 million.
In a complaint, the BIR sought the indictment of executives of Our Lady of Lourdes International Medical Center Inc. led by its president Dr. Noel Lacsamana for violation of the National International Revenue Code.
The revenue collection agency accused the hospital administration of non-remittance of withholding taxes totaling P15,709,671.73 from professional fees of its doctors and the compensation of its employees.
“Despite various notifications, the respondent hospital still failed to settle its outstanding account and to remit taxes due to the BIR,” the BIR said,
“The deliberate failure on the part of Lourdes Medical to remit and pay the aforesaid taxes to the BIR greatly prejudiced the government,” it said.
The BIR alleged that Lourdes Medical did not pay withholding taxes on compensation covering the periods of November and December 2015 and January to December 2016 as well as expanded withholding tax during the same periods and January to April and June of this year.
Meanwhile, separate tax evasion charges were also filed against a contractor from Pampanga for non-payment of excise taxes amounting to P12.447 million and possession of cigarettes without necessary tax stamps.
It specifically accused Jeric Maninang of violating Sections 263, 265 (c) and 258 of NIRC through his San Fernando, Pampanga – based construction business J.U.M. Construction.
The case stemmed from the 60 boxes of assorted cigarettes with fake tax stamps seized by police from the truck of the company.
“No valid internal revenue stamps were found on the packs of cigarettes tested. Based on the four-day validation activity conducted by the BIR, 100 percent of the total stamps tested on the cigarette packs loaded in the turn were found to be fake and were confiscated,” the BIR complaint stated.
“The stamps are fake since they did not contain one of the multi-layered security features of a valid internal revenue stamp. The fact that the packs of cigarettes did not come from the manufacturing plant is proof that the internal revenue stamps affixed in the packs of cigarettes are fake and that no excise tax was paid,” it stressed.
The bureau further alleged that Maninang did not even register his business with the BIR and pay the required annual registration fee.
“As a consequence of the criminal acts of respondent Maninang of using fake internal revenue stamps, it evaded payment of the correct excise tax amounting to a total deficiency excise tax per P12,447,000, inclusive of increments,” it pointed out.
The BIR filed the two cases under the Run After Tax Evaders program.
