Dolce & Gabbana designers to stand trial for alleged tax evasion

MILAN - Reuters

Italian fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana will stand trial for alleged tax evasion, according to legal sources and a court filing seen by Reuters. AFP photo

Italian fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana will stand trial for alleged tax evasion, according to legal sources and a court filing seen by Reuters.

Milan judge Giuseppe Gennari gave the green light for prosecutors to bring the fashion duo to court over allegations of tax evasion offences totaling around 1 billion euros ($1.25 billion).

The decision in the long-running case came after a higher court overturned a previous acquittal for the two glamorous designers, who have denied any wrongdoing.

“Everyone knows that we haven’t done anything,” Gabbana said in a tweet on Friday.

Milan prosecutors allege the fashion duo had sold their D&G and Dolce & Gabbana brands to a holding company they set up in Luxembourg in 2004 in order to avoid paying high taxes in Italy. The investigations first started in 2007.

The designers had been cleared from accusations by a previous court last year, to the joy of numerous fans who cheered the news on the Internet.But prosecutors appealed against the decision and a high court overturned the ruling in November asking for a new judge to decide whether to send the pair to trial for unpaid taxes. A court filing seen by Reuters confirmed the decision reported by the sources.