Italian police state that former Renault F1 Managing Director Flavio Briatore is under investigation for tax evasion with regards to Force Blue, the yacht owned by the 60-year-old which was moored in Monte-Carlo over the course of the recent Monaco Grand Prix weekend.
According to the Associated Press, Italian police boats are believed to have followed and then boarded the yacht - with Briatore already on-board - along the Côte d'Azur as the Italian is claimed to have stated that the vessel had been chartered out when in fact it was being used by himself and family only, avoiding taxes in the process.
A figure of approximately 4.8 million euros (4.1 million pounds) has been linked to Briatore, supposedly owed to the Italian government in the form of Value Added Tax (VAT) for the yacht and its fuel.
"This operation has been ongoing for a year and ended with the impounding of Flavio Briatore's yacht," Italian police chief Captain Giuseppe Pappalardo explained to reporters.
"Basically, it is a matter of contraband because Signor Briatore is an EU citizen and the boat has been registered outside the European Union, so if he uses it in European waters then VAT applies. Foreign-registered boats are exempt from fuel taxes but only if they leave EU waters within eight hours of refuelling."
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