(Paris) Four former senior McDonald’s executives were arrested by police on Wednesday as part of a preliminary investigation by the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office on suspicion of tax evasion, a source close to the matter learned.
This police custody, taking place at the headquarters of the Office for Combating Financial and Tax Crime (OCLCIFF), was announced by The bound duck In its Wednesday version.
According to the satirical weekly, confirmed by Agence France-Presse from a source familiar with the matter, the officials involved are Dennis Heineken, CEO of McDonald’s Europe in 2009, and Jean-Pierre Petit, CEO of the brand in France and executive vice president for Europe. Between 2004 and 2015, as well as CFO in France and Executive Vice President for France and Europe.
It was the conclusion of a deal in 2009 between McDonald’s parent company and its French subsidiary that raised suspicions. This agreement provided for the return of a portion of the profits made by the French subsidiary to the United States, thereby avoiding taxes.
according to The bound duckThe French tax authorities hope to recover “from 300 to 600 million euros or even one billion euros”.
In response to a question by Agence France-Presse, McDonald’s France indicated that the brand announced “its activities in France and pays all due taxes in accordance with the laws in force” and was “, for example, one of the most important contributors to the corporate tax.”
It specifies that franchisees will pay “a cumulative corporate tax in excess of one billion euros in France” between 2009 and 2013.
The trademark indicated cooperation with legal authorities and continued “to this day in maintaining, on behalf of its shareholders, regular and technical exchanges on the complex issue of the value of trademark property rights and knowledge with the entire relevant departments and authorities.”
Jean-Pierre Petit served as CEO of McDonald’s France and Executive Vice President in Europe in charge of Southern Europe between 2004 and 2015, then Director of Operations for the brand’s leading international markets (Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Canada and Australia), before his retirement. In 2018.
Founded in France since 1979, McDonald’s France has around 75,000 employees and plans to surpass 1,500 restaurants in France with around thirty openings in 2021.
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