The Plenary of the Audit Court is set to determine whether former LAOS leader Giorgos Karatzaferis must repay the state €5,512,372.57. This amount has been contested as it cannot be justified by his known sources of income and was omitted from his “πόθεν έσχες” (assets and liabilities) declarations, despite his establishment of an offshore company.
The Plenary Session has reviewed a petition from the State aiming to overturn a First Chamber decision that ruled Mr. Karatzaferis does not owe this sum, also dismissing the Commissioner General’s request for imputation. A decision is pending.
In 2014, the general commissioner of the Court of Auditors sought to impute the €5,512,372.57 to Mr. Karatzaferis, as he was required to file property status declarations from 1993 to 2011 due to his roles as a member of parliament and leader of the “LAOS” party. The imputation stemmed from a lack of evidence regarding the legal origins of this financial gain during the relevant years.
The €5.5 Million Profit
The proposal for imputation, finalized in 2016, states that Mr. Karatzaferis’s gains include:
a/ $6,600,000, equivalent to the value of the offshore company “CATALINA INTERNATIONAL Ltd”/”SUNSHINE DELIGHT Ltd” as of September 21, 2009. He was the beneficial owner of its assets, even after transferring shares to his sister in January 2010. This amount converts to €4,502,660.66, based on the exchange rate at that time (1 USD = 1.4658 EUR).
Since 2010, it has been illegal for political figures to engage in offshore companies.
The sum of €5,512,372.57 is categorized as property benefits for Mr. Karatzaferis, with the origins deemed unjustifiable in relation to his known income sources, thus warranting recovery in favor of the Greek State.
The Appeal
In 2020, four years later, the Court of Auditors’ First Chamber reviewed the Commissioner General’s imputation proposal. However, in 2023, the Chamber dismissed the proposal as inadmissible and unfounded, arguing it lacked clarity. The Chamber cited that the imputed amount did not originate from Mr. Karatzaferis’ properties and noted that one sum (£1,056) was entrusted to him by his mother.
The State has appealed this First Chamber decision, which was recently heard by the full Supreme Fiscal Court, presided over by Soteria Douni.
The proceedings were brief, as both the public defender and Mr. Karatzaferis’s legal representatives opted to submit their arguments in written form rather than during the hearing, addressing the legal concerns raised by the Chamber.
Subsequently, State Commissioner Antonis Nikitakis recommended dismissing the Greek State’s appeal, drawing varied reactions from the attending lawyers.
The Court of Auditors reserved its ruling, which is eagerly anticipated. Notably, the statute of limitations for claiming undue financial benefits is 20 years, according to the Court’s precedents.
Criminal Proceedings
The criminal elements of this case are significant. In 2014, the Corruption Prosecutor’s Office charged Mr. Karatzaferis with: a) submitting an incomplete asset declaration and b) participating in offshore companies as a political leader, MP, and MEP.
The Appeals Council later downgraded these charges to misdemeanors. In 2015, he was sentenced by a Three-Member Plenary Court to 12 months in prison (suspended for three years) and fined €10,000 for submitting an inaccurate tax return, while being acquitted regarding the offshore company, based on his claim that his accountant failed to report it.
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