The day after the auction, Emir Yoma and his brothers, along with other members of the company’s board of directors, are due to testify before a court charged with misappropriation of tax subsidies. The authorities have suggested that the Yoma tannery claimed back vat on leather it exported without having filed necessary documentation. The charges date back to June 1998 when Yoma was ordered to return the sum of 1,278,502 pesos (US$400,000 at today’s exchange rate). If they are found guilty, the sentence is expected to be between three and nine years in prison.
The tannery was recently sold to Brazilian tanning group Bom Retiro for US$ 6 million ending the Yoma family’s involvement with the operation.
