Jean-Claude Juncker dismisses claims that freeports are ‘systematically used to commit fraud’

Anny Shaw: The Art Newspaper

The European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has rejected allegations of fraud and irregularities related to the management of Le Freeport Luxembourg, which is owned by the Swiss art dealer Yves Bouvier.

In a letter dated 8 January, the German MEP Wolf Klinz called on Junckerto close loopholes that potentially allow for financial crimes to be committed at freeports after concerns were raised by the EU’s Tax3 committee.

Referring specifically to Le Freeport Luxembourg, which opened its steel turnstiles to VIP bankers, art dealers and collectors in August 2014, Klinz says the storage facility had “been alleged to be a fertile ground for money laundering and tax evasion”. The complex was built while Juncker was Luxembourg’s prime minister and enables clients to fly in high-value possessions such as cars, jewellery and art and trade them inside the freeport’s walls without incurring customs or sales tax. Freeports are increasingly being used as facilities to permanently park assets. …Read More