Two individuals have been detained and placed in preventive custody, charged with aiding illegal immigration, conspiracy to aid illegal immigration, recruiting illegal labor, human trafficking, and money laundering, according to the Public Prosecutor’s Office (PPO) today.
The PPO also disclosed that alongside these charges, authorities are probing allegations related to corruption in the private sector, fiscal fraud, attempted subsidy fraud, and document forgery.
The investigation centers on suspicions regarding improper payments by various entrepreneurs in the meat industry to non-executive employees of two retail and food distribution companies, in exchange for preferential treatment in ordering their products.
Operation Abatedouro is also scrutinizing applications for community funds aimed at building facilities and acquiring machinery in the agricultural sector, reportedly providing false information or submitting forged documentation, which concealed the fact that certain works and purchases had already commenced, disqualifying them from funding, the statement continued.
Suspicion also surrounds a group of individuals and companies allegedly exploiting the “documentary, social, and economic vulnerability of various citizens from third countries,” the PPO added.
These individuals, seeking to regularize their residency in Portugal, accepted employment without formal contracts and received pay below market rates for their roles in labor-intensive sectors such as meat slaughtering, processing, and marketing.
Additionally, companies and their representatives are under investigation for formally declaring business objectives different from their actual operations — notably, labor leasing to firms involved in slaughtering, processing, and meat marketing — while falsely inscribing costs into their accounts.
This alleged conduct aimed to eliminate or offset profits from this activity by unlawfully deducting VAT on invoices and reducing taxable profit for corporate tax purposes, involving an amount close to eight million euros, the PPO highlighted.
The operation resulted in the seizure of approximately half a million euros, 70 horses, around 60 sheep, and ten vehicles.
The investigated events unfolded from January 1, 2019, with Wednesday’s searches involving three prosecutors, members of the Operational Unit for Investigation and Prevention of the Central Department of Investigation and Prosecution (DCIAP), PSP officers, and inspectors from the Tax Authority.
These operations also involved collaboration with GNR elements and Labor Conditions Authority inspectors.
