The Ashdod Magistrate’s Court imposed a lengthy prison sentence and a fine on Amir Bar Lev Alon (Partok), an Ashkelon resident who was convicted, based on his confession and a plea bargain, of committing a wide range of severe tax offenses.
According to the sentence, the defendant was convicted of 42 offenses of issuing tax invoices without being entitled to issue them, 4 offenses of failing to submit a periodic VAT report on time, and 6 offenses of deducting input tax without a tax invoice. The scope of tax withheld from the state treasury as a result of his actions totals approximately 5.7 million NIS, with no amount of the missing tax having been returned by the time of sentencing.
The court determined that these were offenses that severely harmed the public coffer, the principle of equality in bearing the tax burden, and public trust in the general system; it was also noted that the defendant has a prior conviction for tax offenses.
Alongside this, the court also considered personal circumstances, including the defendant’s economic and family situation, but ruled that they were insufficient to justify a substantial reduction in the sentence given the severity and scope of the actions.
The sentence reflects, in the court’s words, the sentencing policy for severe tax offenses, and is intended to convey a clear message of zero tolerance toward intentional harm to the public coffer.
The case was prepared and managed by Adv. Nofar Hen Malu’i and Adv. Noy Okman Saban from the Ashdod Regional VAT Legal Department.