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A Napier dairy owner who evaded paying $200,000 in taxes has repaid $165,000, Napier District Court was told today.
Pakistani immigrant and Carlyle St store proprietor Farrukh Hashmi, 42, had pleaded guilty in September to nine charges of failing to pay GST and income tax on undeclared earnings of $486,797 since 2002.
He had previously told investigators: "Where I come from we didn't pay tax."
Judge Tony Adeane said since his last appearance Hashmi had repaid $165,000 of the money owed and now had just over $30,000 left.
He said Hashmi had made a "considerable effort" to repay the money.
Defence counsel and the Crown had agreed that community detention was an appropriate sentence.
Hashmi was sentenced to six months' community detention and ordered to pay $30,000 in reparations at the minimum rate of $100 per week.
- NZPA
