IPOH: A 49-year-old lorry workshop owner has claimed trial at the Sessions Court here to eight charges of failing to pay goods and services tax (GST) and penalties totalling RM271,875.
Look Pek Kong entered the plea after the charges under Section 41(7) of the Goods and Services Tax Act were read out before Judge Ainul Shahrin Mohamad today.
According to the charges, Look failed to pay GST for eight taxable periods between April 1, 2016 and June 30, 2018. The offences were committed at the Perak Customs Department.
The outstanding GST amounted to RM226,040, while the penalties totalled RM45,835.
If convicted, Look faces a fine of up to RM50,000, imprisonment for up to three years, or both, for each offence.
He also faces two other charges under Section 165(4) of the same Act and Section 57(4) of the Service Tax Act for allegedly failing to produce documents requested by Customs officers.
Customs Department prosecuting officers Nur Amalina Ahmad Nazeri and Ar Junadi Jamaluddin prosecuted, while Look was unrepresented.
The prosecution proposed bail of RM3,000 for each charge, but Look appealed for a lower amount, saying he could only afford RM1,000 per charge.
The court set bail at RM1,000 for each of the eight charges, with one surety, bringing the total to RM8,000.
The court fixed Nov 19 for mention.
The prosecution said Look was expected to pay the bail later today.
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