Mpisane trial continues

Durban businesswoman Shauwn Mpisane's fraud trial will continue in the Durban Regional Court on Friday.Mpisane is accused of inflating invoices by more than R5 million in a bid to cut her tax bill. 

 

She is also accused of violating the Close Corporations Act by remaining the sole member of Zikhulise Cleaning, Maintenance and Transport CC when she had a previous fraud conviction. The court heard on Thursday that Mpisane first tried to fight a tax penalty before seeking to reduce the tax payable using forged invoices. SA Revenue Service (Sars) auditor Waheeda Osman testified the penalty was on Mpisane's late payment of tax on a R47 million dividend declared by her firm, Cleaning Maintenance and Transport CC. 

 

She said Mpisane had initially objected to the 100 percent tax penalty levied. The court heard that Mabongi Flora Junior, Mpisane's business, had declared a dividend of R10.5 million in 2007 and in the following year it had declared a R47 million dividend. She has pleaded not guilty. According to Osman, regulations stipulated that tax on the dividend should have been paid to Sars within a month of being declared, but this had not been done and had led Sars to impose a 100 percent tax.

 

-Sapa