Tobacco giant to appeal ruling
COURTS: Philip Morris (Thailand) Limited (PMTL) announced yesterday that it will appeal a Criminal Court ruling that it wrongly declared the price of cigarettes imported from Indonesia between 2002 and 2003.
The court dismissed all charges against the defendant, who was a former PMTL employee, and instead imposed a fine of just over 130 million baht (approximately US$4 million) against PMTL. Philip Morris International Inc, PMTL’s parent company, is neither a party to this case nor liable for the fine.
Gerald Margolis, branch manager of PMTL, said: “We strongly disagree with today’s decision as it is contrary to domestic and international customs law, including the rulings of both Thai and international authorities.”
The Criminal Court last year slapped a 1.2-billion-baht fine on the company for evading taxes for cigarettes imported from the Philippines between 2003 and 2006.
According to the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG), PMTL declared L&M cigarettes imported from the Philippines at 5.88 baht, while other importers declared a price of 16.81 baht per packet.
The firm also declared the cost, insurance and freight rate on Marlboro imported from the Philippines at 7.76 baht per packet, far lower than the 27.46 baht reported by other importers.
Undervaluing imports meant the company had avoided over 20 billion baht in taxes, the OAG said. The defendants denied the charges.