The National Police have arrested 24 people suspected of having allegedly defrauded Social Security of 7.7 million euros in Barcelona and Girona, as reported this Monday by the police force. The case began in October of last year after several writings and complaints alerted of the various irregular actions carried out by the administrators of different companies in order to avoid their payment obligations with Social Security.
The employers of these companies allegedly did not pay social security or those of their workers, thereby achieving a greater profit margin. Police investigations have confirmed the participation of a total of 46 people in the fraud.
Specifically, the de facto administrators of the companies, their front men, as well as workers or relatives of the administrators are being investigated for alleged crimes against Social Security and frustration of execution. In all these cases, the police have observed a common fact: the successive creation of companies with the same activity within the corporate purpose investigated. All of them, furthermore, were directed, managed and administered by the same people.
Once the companies generated debts with the Social Security for not paying the contributions relating to their workers, they deregistered and then formed a new company with the same corporate purpose, business management and the same workers in order to continue operating and avoid possible embargoes.
One of the investigated plots involves six food catering and retail companies, all run by two businessmen who used two more people as intermediaries. Another branch was linked to the construction sector and they have also detected a plot involving 19 companies in the hospitality sector, in which the alleged perpetrator used part of his family – daughter, wife and brothers – in order to hide the debt. generated with Social Security.
The police estimate that all these business networks caused economic damage to Social Security amounting in total to 7,712,160 euros.
