TIRANA, March 21 – The nationwide campaigns against widespread electricity thefts and tax evasion increased the number of people convicted of these offences by 4 to 6 times in 2015, according to an annual report by the General Prosecutor’s office.
The increase is sharper in criminal offences related to taxes which corresponds with the September 2015 launch of an aggressive nationwide campaign to tackle widespread informality, estimated at 30 percent of the GDP.
The Prosecutor’s office says it launched 286 investigations into tax evasion and failure to pay taxes in 2015 compared to 62 in 2014. Some 215 people were sentenced in 2015, mainly for tax evasion compared to only 35 in 2014.
Albania punishes tax evasion by up to eight years in prison and failure to pay taxes with fines and up to three years in prison, according to the country’s Criminal Code amended in late 2015.
Data shows the overwhelming majority of 95 percent of those suspected of tax fraud were males having completed only compulsory or secondary education and not previously convicted.
The increase in investigations mainly in the final quarter of 2015 came after the General Prosecutor’s Office signed a cooperation deal with the ministries of Finance and Interior in September 2015 as a part of a nationwide campaign to tackle informality.
Last year also registered a significant increase in those sentenced for electricity theft following a nationwide campaign launched in late 2014 and legal changes which made power thefts punishable by up to three years in prison.
The General Prosecutor’s Office says some 2,115 people were sentenced for electricity thefts in 2015 compared to only 561 in 2014.
Prosecutors said two-thirds of the suspected electricity thieves were unemployed and requested imprisonment for only half of the accused.
The People’s Advocate has recommended avoiding remand in custody and applying alternative sentences for those tried for electricity thefts also to prevent further overcrowding of detention and prison facilities.
While the nationwide campaign against electricity thefts has had positive effects, lifting the state-run electricity sector out of financial collapse, the results of the nationwide campaign against informality have been mixed, failing to provide the expected increase in government revenue although thousands of businesses previously operating informally registered with tax authorities.
