Following a referral from the MRA, ICAC initiated an investigation into Alassio Ltd which, according to the tax authorities, was not VAT registered but benefited from payments of more than Rs 10 million for which the company deducted tax from receipts issued to customers.
The ICAC investigation started in July 2020. It was conducted in close collaboration with the MRA. Aboubakar Ibrahim Rajah is the director and shareholder of the company. Alassio Ltd never submitted a VAT return since its incorporation in 2017. It is not even registered with the MRA and has never paid Corporate Tax even though the turnover of the company, from August 2018 to August 2020, amounts to more than Rs 30M. The VAT levied is about Rs 3.2M. Icac and MRA believe it was collected illegally.
The Money Trail done by ICAC showed that during this period, the company acquired land and vehicles which it sold some time later.
Aboubakar Ibrahim Rajah has been placed under arrest and has been presented before Rose Hill court this Thursday. A charge of money laundering under section 3 of FIAMLA has been brought against him. He has been released on bail.
