One of the cranes installed at the container terminal at the port of Tripoli (North Lebanon). (Credit: Philippe Hajj Boutros/L'Orient-Le Jour)
Lebanon’s State Security announced on Thursday that it had uncovered tax evasion amounting to around $500,000 at Tripoli port, as part of its efforts to protect public funds and combat financial and administrative corruption.
In a statement, the General Directorate of State Security said it had launched a judicial investigation into a port administration official in Tripoli, along with the owners and agents of 18 shipping companies, after receiving information that several shipping agencies had been evading payment of port fees owed since 2010.
According to State Security, the unpaid dues were estimated at “about half a million dollars.” Investigators found evidence of deliberate non-payment by the companies, as well as professional negligence by certain port officials who failed to ensure proper administrative oversight and recovery of the outstanding fees.
State Security said the port official remains under investigation, while the owners of 16 shipping companies were compelled to settle part of their arrears, paying $150,000 and 75 million Lebanese pounds. They were released on bail after receiving payment receipts and pledging to appear before the judiciary. Additional unpaid amounts, estimated at $300,000, remain outstanding.
The case has been referred to the competent judicial authority to pursue legal proceedings and recover the remaining sums.
The announcement comes amid broader scrutiny of customs practices at Tripoli port. In December, the investigating judge for North Lebanon, Jocelyne Matta, took up a separate case of alleged fraud involving customs officials at the same port — also uncovered by State Security. Those officials are suspected of facilitating customs tax evasion by allowing the entry of goods declared as weighing 50 tons when their actual weight was allegedly 100 tons.
Efforts to combat customs evasion have drawn renewed attention in Lebanon, particularly after the government this week decided to finance higher public-sector wages by raising VAT and fuel prices, rather than pursue alternative revenue-collection measures.
