BUREAU of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui, Jr. led the nationwide filing Thursday of 74 tax evasion charges amounting to P3.58 billion before the Department of Justice (DOJ) against individuals and corporate taxpayers in violation of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended.

The filing was made under the Marcos administration and BIR’s Run After Tax Evader Program (RATE), which required revenue officials and employees to investigate criminal violations and assist in prosecuting criminal cases.

Also present in the filing of these cases was Deputy Commissioner for the Legal Group Marissa O. Cabreros, Assistant Commissioner James H. Roldan of the Enforcement Advocacy Service, Prosecution Division, LT (Local Tax) Collection Enforcement Division, and revenue officials from the participating Revenue Regions.

The following Revenue Regions and Local Tax Division, which filed separate criminal cases against the aforementioned tax evaders, are as follows:

• Revenue Region No. 5 – Caloocan filed nine amounting to P827,142,550.14

• Revenue Region No. 6 – City of Manila two (2) amounting to P13,944,000

• Revenue Region No. 7A – Quezon City four (4) amounting to P50,489,462.08

• Revenue Region No. 8A – Makati City ten (10) amounting to P1,725,996,752.04

• Revenue Region No. 8B – South NCR seven (7) amounting to P413,711,829.33

• Revenue Region No. 9A – CaBaMiRo six (6) amounting to P115,209,151.65

• Revenue Region No. 9B – LaQueMar five (5) amounting to P114,110,950.24

• Revenue Region No. 13 – Cebu City three (3) amounting to P44,887,444.91

• Revenue Region No. 16 – Cagayan de Oro City three (3) amounting to P16,607,516.64

• Revenue Region No. 17 – Butuan City three (3) amounting to P149,108,290.05

• LT Collection Enforcement Division – National Office one (1) amounting to P96,665,089.06

The following violations were charged against the erring taxpayers: Willful Failure to Pay Taxes; Willful Attempt to Evade or Defeat the Payment of Taxes Due; Willful Failure to Pay/Remit its Income Tax Liabilities. This includes those who filed their tax returns, without corresponding payment.

“We would like to remind tax evaders that the BIR is serious in pursuing its enforcement activities on a national scale. We are also sharing this [with] the public because we want to assure you that the BIR is committed to [ensuring] that everyone is paying their fair share of taxes,” Lumagui said.

Recently, Lumagui also led the BIR during its first nationwide raid of illicit cigarettes on January 25, 2023. Filing of criminal cases against these illicit cigarette traders is soon to follow.

“As tax filing season is approaching, let this serve as a warning to taxpayers who intend to fraudulently evade payment of taxes that they better file and pay the correct taxes,” Lumagui warned.