BIR to file info sheet on Villarica tax evasion raps

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Monday said it is now preparing to file an information sheet with the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) in pursuing the tax evasion case against pawnshop magnate William Villarica. It said it welcomes the Department of Justice decision last week which found probable cause in filing criminal charges against Villarica for supposedly violating the Internal Revenue Code. “Even if Villarica seeks for a motion for reconsideration, the case can still proceed in the CTA. The Justice Department has deputized BIR lawyers to handle the prosecution of tax evasion cases in the courts," BIR Commissioner Kim Henares said. Villarica owns the popular pawnshop chain W. Villarica Pawnshop with branches in the cities of Caloocan, Malabon and Marikina, and in Bulacan province. Villarica’s is among the first tax evasion cases Henares filed since taking charge of the BIR last year. The bureau said Villarica bought a two-door Lamborghini for P26 million in 2007, the same year he and his wife supposedly did not pay their taxes. The pawnshop business was still on active status at that time, the bureau added. Under its Run After Tax Evaders program or RATE, the BIR uses third party information like the income tax records of a supplier or buyer to cross check with its own data and find out if a person or company has tax deficiency. In Villarica’s case, the BIR looked at the information provided by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and learned that Villarica has four other vehicles under his name. — VS, GMA News