Eight private individuals, one of whom works for the State Tax Inspectorate, and six legal entities will stand trial for tax evasion, pseudo-entrepreneurial activity and money laundering, IPN reports.

In a news conference, prosecutor Nadejda Busuioc said the employee of the State Tax Inspectorate, besides the other offenses, is also accused of abuse of power. At the request of prosecutors, the given person was suspended from post.

The prosecutors established that in 2015-2016, the suspects managed from behind companies where persons with residence in the Transnistrian region were indicated as founders and administrators in all the accounting documents so as to obtain financial advantages and do not pay taxes. Furthermore, they introduced false data in the financial accounts. This way they caused considerable damage to the public budget of the Republic of Moldova.

In February-October this year, the police carried out over 50 searches in the offices, homes and cars of the suspects, seizing accounting documents from about 150 companies suspected of performing fictitious transactions. The prosecutors assessed the damage caused to the national public budget by non-payment of VAT at approximately 9 million lei, while the illegal economic operations at 65 million lei. Property to the value of 2.5 million lei belonging to the suspects was confiscated.