Chimilio told the court that he is unemployed and only gets a monthly allowance of $500 to $600 from his wife
Yesterday, Bertie Chimilio, former president of the Football Federation of Belize (FFB), was summoned to appear in court due to claims by the Income Tax Department that he owes them for taxes that went unpaid during his period as FFB president — a whopping $33,310. The matter was adjourned until today, allowing the department to call Ann Castillo, of the department, to testify about the interviews that she had conducted with Chimilio before the department decided to turn the matter over to the court.
This morning when Castillo appeared before the court, she testified about the difficulty she experienced while trying to create an assessment of Chimilio’s salaries, since there were few records available that could provide an accurate picture of his total revenue.
Castillo also told the court that after requesting assistance from the previous members of the FFB, she was able to obtain cancelled cheques and a salary registry, from which she was able to create an assessment.
The cancelled cheques showed that Chimilio was receiving what he had previously referred to as a “stipend” — between $3,500 and $5,000 per month, with some of the cheques written out for greater amounts.
Based on those cancelled cheques, Castillo assessed that Chimilio was receiving $3,500 per month as a salary, and $1,500 for fuel allowance and other miscellaneous expenses as well.
In his defense, Chimilio told the court that he is not currently employed and only receives a monthly allowance of $500 to $600 from his wife. He also argued that the cheques which had been submitted to the court were not proof of the amount he was receiving as a “salary” within the time periods for which the department was making a claim.
When asked about cancelled cheques for the period between 2010 and 2011, Castillo informed the court that those records had been destroyed.
Magistrate Leslie Hamilton then ruled that Chimilio must pay the $33,310 in monthly installments of $500, effective September 2013.