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Germany: EPPO arrests suspects and carries out searches and seizures in €10 million VAT carousel fraud

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seized goods, gold, watches, cash

 (Luxembourg, 21 March 2025) – The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Munich (Germany) is leading an investigation into a suspected €10 million cross-border VAT carousel fraud scheme. 28 searches and seizures were conducted yesterday, resulting in three arrests in Leipzig and Munich.

The Tax Investigation Office in Leipzig (Steuerfahndung Leipzig), supported by the Tax Investigation Offices in Berlin and Munich (Steuerfahndung Berlin/Steuerfahndung München), and the criminal police Leipzig (KPI Leipzig) and the police in Munich (Polizeipräsidium München), carried out the searches of premises of the companies under investigation and the arrests. In addition, they successfully seized gold, luxury watches and cash worth more than € 1 million.

With support of the German Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), € 2.2 million were frozen on bank accounts in Germany. 

The suspects are believed to be members of an organised crime group, responsible for a cross-border VAT carousel fraud – a complex criminal scheme that takes advantage of EU rules on cross-border transactions between its Member States, as these are exempt from value-added tax.

The investigation is ongoing, in order to determine the extent of the criminal activities.

All persons concerned are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in the competent German courts of law.

The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.