Legislation

Mexico – Corruption investigation launched in Mexico over tax break for casinos

By Phil - 11 February 2020

Lawmakers for the state of Quintana Roo are claiming that part of a law which would have benefited new casinos was the result of corruption and have vowed to find the person responsible.

Deputies for the State Congress have agreed to initiate an investigation in order to find the person who they say could have deliberately changed substituted or modified state documents.

“If the person in charge is a deputy, he will be subjected to political trial for his dismissal and if he is an employee of the Congress, he will be sanctioned,” said local lawmaker José Luis Toledo Medina.

“We reached an agreement for the deputies to carry out an internal process, for probable acts of corruption in the Committee on Finance, Budget and Accounts, then there will be an investigation, the honourable State Congress was already obliged to make a thorough internal investigation,” said the legislator.

The purpose, he said was to identify and punish the person “who replaced documents in the case of casinos, because it is a crime to alter a legislative procedure, because it violates the law.’

In January lawmakers for the state completed the fiscal measures for 2020 which included an exemption of taxes on the establishment of new gaming rooms for new investors, meaning that all companies that set up a casino would not have paid taxes this year.

However amidst a growing public outcry lawmakers repealed the article during a special session. The new Income Law indicated that the benefit was for “Individuals or corporations that make investments in the state of Quintana Roo, exceeding 40 million pesos (US$2,106.299) and whose commercial purpose is games and contests in casinos

“In addition, the measure established that these casinos had to be located in tourist areas, and potential investors would be required to prove that at least 50 per cent of their clients were foreigners or non-residents.