Manila, July 11 -- The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday announced the filing of 18 criminal charges before the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) against a construction company and a trading corporation for tax evasion.

In a statement, the DOJ said the cases were filed against Buenviaje Builders, Inc. (E.D.Buenviaje) and Synergy Sales International Corporation (SSIC) and their responsible officers after a preliminary investigation of the complaints submitted by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

The BIR accused the two firms of transacting with ghost companies Buildforce Trading, Inc., and Decarich Supertrade Inc., which were created to issue fraudulent official receipts "to substantiate fictitious claims and expense deductions to unlaw...