Napoles couple files counter-affidavit in P61-M tax evasion case

Pork barrel fund scam alleged mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles and her husband Jaime Napoles have submitted a counter-affidavit in a P61-million tax evasion complaint against them.

 

During the resumption of preliminary investigation at the Department of Justice in Manila on Tuesday, Ian Encarnacion, legal counsel for the Napoles couple, told the DOJ panel that her clients had subscribed to their joint counter-affidavit before a public prosecutor in Sta. Rosa, Laguna on December 5.

 

Napoles is currently detained at Fort Sto. Domingo in Laguna.

 

Encarnacion refused to reveal details of his clients' 12-page counter-affidavit, saying he does not want to violate the sub judice rule, which prevents parties in the case from discussing in public the merits of a pending case.

 

The DOJ panel gave the Bureau of Internal Revenue, which filed the tax evasion complaint, until December 17 to submit a reply to the Napoleses' counter-affidavit.

 

Meanwhile, the Napoles couple's daughter, Jeane, also facing tax evasion charges, was given more time, also until December 17, to submit her own counter-affidavit since she has yet to get a counsel for herself.

 

The Napoles couple was charged with willful attempt to evade paying taxes for taxable years 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012.

 

Also, the BIR accused Napoles of either failing to file an income tax return from 2010 to 2012 or supplying incorrect information in her ITRs in 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2009.

 

Henares said BIR's investigation found out that Napoles' acquisitions amounted to:

 

Despite these "acquisitions" consisting of condominium units, land parcels, and vehicles, Napoles had only declared an income of P195,800 in 2004 and 100,744.59 in 2008.

 

The BIR said that in 2006 and 2009, Mrs. Napoles declared a "P0.00" income. Meanwhile, she did not file any ITRs for the years 2010, 2011, and 2012.

 

As for Mr. Napoles, his acquisitions amounted to: 

 

In contrast, Mr. Napoles did not file any ITRs for these years, except for taxable year 2009 where he declared nothing.

 

Mrs. Napoles' acquisitions included condominium units in City and Land Mega Plaza and the Discovery Center, parcels of land in Pangasinan and Kidapawan City, insurance policies with Insular Life Assurance Co Ltd, Philippine American Life and General Insurance Co Inc, and Philippine Axa Life Insurance Corp, and vehicles such as a Ford Lincoln Navigator, a Honda Civic and a Porsche Cayenne.

 

The BIR said Mrs. Napoles declared "sole proprietorship of merchandising goods" as source of her income. Her tax registration was then canceled in 2010. —KG, GMA News