Hogan eludes criminal case as ACC drops its inquiry
Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan would be free from any criminal liabilities after all following the Australian Crime Commission's (ACC) announcement on Tuesday that the investigation against the Australian actor would be ceased.
However, the ACC clarified in a statement that its decision to drop the criminal inquiry on Hogan would not necessarily mean that his tax troubles with the Australian Taxation Office would be nixed too.
The crime commission said that its probe on Mr Hogan's alleged criminal liabilities was independent from the tax case being pursued by the ATO, which saw the US-based actor being prevented from leaving Australia following his visit months ago to attend the funeral of his mother.
The tax office requested the Australian immigration authorities to hold the departure of Hogan from the country to enable him to answer the $300 million Wickenby tax case filed by the ATO against the celebrity.
The ATO had alleged that Hogan and his associates deliberately avoided paying their tax dues in Australia by setting up accounts on offshore tax havens.
As for the criminal investigation that cropped up due to the celebrated tax case against the Australian actor, ACC chief executive John Lawler said that the agency had opted to drop the investigation as the matter already veered away from public interest.
Mr Lawler added that as per ACC's assessment, securing a conviction for a criminal case against Hogan would be too remote as he stressed that "continuing with the investigation is not justified in the public interest having regard to a range of factors."
The ACC said that a detailed statement on Mr Hogan's case would be made public on Tuesday afternoon.