Famed fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana were convicted of tax evasion in Milan, Italy and were handed a suspended sentence of 20 months in prison. They were accused of selling their D&G brand to Luxembourg-based holding company Gado in 2004 to avoid declaring taxes on royalties of approximately 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion). An investigation began in 2008 when Italian authorities were attempting to crack down on tax evasion once the financial crisis started to affect Italy.
What Does This Mean?:
As in the United States, it is against the law to evade paying taxes in Italy as well. As we are aware, many celebrities in the US have gone to jail for either failure to file tax returns and/or evading taxes all together. Due to the conviction handed down, the pair was given a “suspended sentence” of 20 months. A suspended sentence in the United States is when the defendant does not have to serve any time in prison. Though the prison time was suspended, they were also ordered to pay a fine of 10 million euro ($13.4 million). Attorneys for D&G vow to appeal the conviction.
How Does This Affect You?:
Pay your taxes ! File your tax returns! Uncle Sam does not play games. It is against the law to evade taxes. Yes, there are tons of corporate loop holes to avoid maximum payments, but there are equally as many illegal loop holes baiting individuals and corporate officers. Do we have to run down the list? Lauryn Hill, Wesley Snipes, Ronald Isley, etc., etc…..
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SHE’S THE LAW: Dolce & Gabbana Convicted Of Tax Evasion was originally published on hellobeautiful.com
