Timaru man pleads guilty to 58 tax charges

The former director of a Timaru shipping company that went into liquidation owing more than $1 million has pleaded guilty to a raft of tax charges.

Kelvyn Ross Leslie, 70, admitted 58 charges of aiding and abetting two companies to apply unlawful tax deductions when he appeared in the Timaru District Court on Thursday.

The charges related to two Timaru-based shipping companies, Leslie Shipping Limited and South East Shipping Limited.

The court heard that Leslie was a joint director of Leslie Shipping Limited from its incorporation in 1983.

He also became the sole shareholder and director of South East Shipping Limited in 2011.

The companies provided shipping services between Timaru and the Chatham Islands.

Both companies were required by law to account for deductions made from their employees’ wages.

Leslie Shipping Limited failed to account for $80,225.88 for PAYE deductions, Kiwisaver employer deductions, student loan employer deductions, and superannuation cash contributions by the due dates between September 2013 and February 2016.

South East Shipping Limited failed to account for $265,777.35 for PAYE deductions, Kiwisaver employer deductions, Kiwisaver employer contributions, student loan employer deductions, and superannuation cash contributions by the due dates between July 2013 and February 2016.

South East Shipping Limited was placed into liquidation in March 2016. A liquidator’s report found it owed an estimated total of $1.37m to 20 creditors.

The court that Leslie was involved with the decision making about both companies’ financial affairs at all times.

During an interview with the Commissioner of Inland Revenue in August 2015, Leslie acknowledged that he was ultimately responsible for the record keeping of both companies.

He was aware that Leslie Shipping Limited owed money to Inland Revenue, and that ‘‘without a doubt’’ there were other creditors being paid in preference to Inland Revenue.

He acknowledged that South East Shipping Limited had other financial commitments, and when they were paid, the company ‘‘struggled to pay everyone else’’.

The reason the company did not pay its employer deductions was because it was ‘‘deprived of cash’’ due to large loan repayments, as well as ‘‘sustained price undercutting from competitors’’.

Leslie pleaded guilty to all charges. He was convicted and remanded on bail for sentencing on September 13.