Dolce & Gabbana fined 343.4 million euros

Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce, the design duo behind Italian fashion label Dolce & Gabbana, have been issued with a 343.4 million euros fine by the Italian Tax Commission for tax evasion. The duo were sentenced on appeal to pay

the fine plus interest after a lengthy court case ended last Friday ruling that the pair had failed to declare millions of euros in revenue by selling their D&G and Dolce & Gabbana brands, to their own Luxembourg-based company, Gado Srl in 2004.

Dolce

& Gabbana guilty of tax evasion

The charges were first brought against the Italian designers in 2007, after The Guardia di Finanza, an Italian police force under the authority of the national minister of economy and finance, consider Gado Srl to be a company set up to enable the pair to avoid the country's high corporate taxes.

The duo were originally cleared of the charges by a lower court in April 2011, as the court deemed there was no foundation for a trial, however that decision was overturned by the Italian Supreme Court in November 2011, which ruled that the designers must stand trial.

According to reports in WWD, Dolce & Gabbana could still avoid paying the fine, it they decide to appeal and wait for a third degree sentence.

This fine issued by the Tax Commission is separate from the ongoing trial in a Milan courtroom, although both relate to the same accusation. The designers have always denied the allegations and apart from the massive fine, the pair could face prison sentences of up to five years if found guilty.

After the court rejected the appeal, Gabbana took to his personal twitter to say: "To be accused of something untrue is not a beautiful thing. But in the end who cares, we will all finish up six feet under.

"I am interested in making clothes and that's all. They can do and say what they want."

The Italian designers have yet to make an official statement on whether they will take the latest decision to the next level of appeal.