Haredim Commit Massive Tax Fraud, Israel’s State Comptroller Finds

Shapira found that haredim exchange money “under the table,” concealing transactions and employment from tax authorities, and use haredi haredi charities and kosher supervision beit dins (religious courts; Badatz [name of haredi community or town]) to launder money and hide it from tax authorities. He also found that haredi kabbalists collected hundreds of millions of shekels in cash from followers seeking blessings, and paid no taxes on that income.

 

Haredim Commit Massive Tax Fraud, Israel’s State Comptroller Finds
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com

In a report issued today, Israel’s State Comptroller Yosef Shapira said that Israeli tax authorities failed to (or were prevented from) collecting tens of millions of shekels in taxes owed by haredi institutions and individuals, Arutz Sheva reported.

Shapira found that haredim exchange money “under the table,” concealing transactions and employment from tax authorities, and use haredi haredi charities and kosher supervision beit dins (religious courts; Badatz [name of haredi community or town]) to launder money and hide it from tax authorities.

He also found that haredi kabbalists collected hundreds of millions of shekels in cash from followers seeking blessings, and paid no taxes on that income.

In response to a series of complaints to police and tax officials about illegal activities by various haredi Badatz organizations, Shapira looked at 20 of those organizations’ activities conducted over a seven-month period, April through October 2013.

Shapira found that 11 rabbis and six Badatz organizations did combined business of 887 million skekels (about $250 million) in the name of a single haredi kabbalist. It was unlikely that all the money actually reached that rabbi's accounts. Instead, the rabbis and organizations were likely used to launder money, Shapira found, with ‘donors’ paying a fee to use the account to deposit income and then withdraw it in cash, hiding the income from tax authorities.

“Tax authorities must increase their efforts to investigate these incidents and bring those perpetrating these crimes to justice,” Shapira wrote in his report, adding that the Israel State Comptroller's office and other authorities have been demanding an investigation into incidents like this since 2009.

Comments

[Rocky]

Anyone who reads this blog with any regularity would not be surprised.

[jancsibacsi]

Nothing new under the sun fraud is their middle name,its what gives them resaon to live after all all their learning this is one way to put their learning into good use cheat lie and steal and above all make your gemoro kop head work for you.

[dh]

Let this be a caveat to the esteemed IRS.

[Alter Kocker]

This is why the Israeli taxpayer must take their vote away from Likud. Mr. Netanyahu is willing to give them the keys to the kingdom as long as they block vote for Likud. Any of the other secular parties would bring the taxing authorities down on them with hammer and tong. Where the hell is secular Israel? Probably too busy making plans to leave the country and let is become a Haredi cesspool.

[WoolSilkCotton; I must be seen to be believed]

I am shocked, shocked.

[normpress]

Virtually any Haredi institution in the US will take a check for $10k (for instance), have their yeshiva in Israel cash the check and have it shipped back to the US and then give the Donor $8,000. in untraceable cash and a receipt for the $10k check. If the donor is in the 40% bracket he get a deduction worth $4,000. That plus the $8,000. gives him $14k in value and the Rabbi gets $2k for his trouble. If you read the book "The Jersey Sting" you'll see how this works in greater detail. I even attended a funeral in St. Louis for a fine member of the community whose converted black hat grand son bragged about how he asked his grandfather to pull such a trick but the grandfather wouldn't do it. First time I heard about money laundering at a funeral.

[Devorah]

Sounds like Ramapo. No difference.

[John Wayne]

Yes, I run a business that sells a lot to chareidi institutions in Jerusalem. Every single time without fail we hear, Oh you charge VAT, we don't pay that.

"I'm sorry to hear that, unfortunately we do!"

[former DCer]

In other news, the state comptroller released a report stating that water is wet.

[Yosef ben Matitya]

the mask is off. many if not most of our contemporara sages, are a bunch of thieving gangsters.

[Notantisemiticjustantihasidic]

You mean to tell me that child rapists are committing fraud? I'm flabbergasted!!!

[egar]

So? How many more years will this continue before justice is served? Or, is this a case of "yeah, we know but (wink wink), more investigation is necessary".

[Mb]

Former dcer- exactly

[dh]

Next is the 'committee'.

[state of disgust]

The chilul HaShem of the so called Haredim, will cause the downfall of Israel.
The problem is the Haredim have forgotten to tremble. They have no shame and no fear.

[dh]

That's because they have nothing to do.

[SatansAdvocate]

How come nobody is complaining that these Haredi institutions stimulate the Israeli economy with hundreds of millions of dollars? Every time a guy or an institution brings a dollar from the America or Europe that's a dollar that stays in Israel. So before you continue spewing in this cesspool, think it through. And if I was from the Israeli government I would turn the other cheek as well.