Scandal in the world of cycling. According to information from Parisian As confirmed by AFP, Lijun D., founder of the German brand Leon Cycle, was detained by customs agents from the Financial Judicial Investigation Service (SEJF). He was taken into custody on Friday at the Health prison in Paris. The leader is accused of fraud of European customs duties and of having established a system of circumvention of customs duties in 2018. The damages are estimated at 26 million euros.
Created in Hannover in 2014, the company employs 51,200 people worldwide, about thirty of them in France. It is present in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United States and Australia. On its website it indicates that its products are “designed in Germany and manufactured in Western Europe”. The bicycles, whose prices range between 1,000 and 2,000 euros, are sold online, in Leon Cycle stores and in large specialized stores under the NCM brand.
According the parisian, customs officials noticed, while examining a container a few months ago in a French port, that goods imported by his company Leon Cycle were declared as coming from South Korea rather than China, allowing customs duties to were lower. Finally, Lijun D. would also be the target of money laundering suspicions. Leisger Holdings Ltd, “the principal holding company” of Leon Cycle, is incorporated in the Cayman Islands.
Chinese consulate notified of arrest
In addition, the motorcycles would have been “also delivered as a kit, making people believe that they are spare parts. A nuance that also allows you to pay a much lower value added tax (VAT), “according to the parisian. The researchers will travel to the Czech Republic and Romania, where the bikes will be assembled before being presented as products made in Europe.
One of his lawyers, Me Rodrigue Flahaut-Prévot, told AFP that the 26 million euro amount is based on “extrapolations” and indicates that his client denies any fraud. He intends to file a release request on Monday for his client, who he says has “all guarantees of representation” and is concerned that “she will be the target of a trade war between Europe and China.” The Chinese consulate was also notified of the arrest of his national.
“On money laundering, there is nothing. The European prosecutor’s office makes an extrapolation because the main holding company is in the Cayman Islands. Mr. D. is a businessman in a stable situation who has no place in the arrest,” says Me Flahaut – Prev.
Source: BFM TV
