CEO sentenced for severe debtor dishonesty at dental clinic in South Karelia

A district court in South Karelia has sentenced the CEO of a private dental clinic to a conditional prison term for severe debtor dishonesty. The sentence is set at four months and ten days, and the court has also imposed a three-year business ban on the CEO, which will end in November 2027.

According to the prosecutor, the CEO withdrew over €43,000 from the company’s bank account between 2022 and 2023 without a valid reason. Some of these withdrawals were recorded in the company’s accounts as loans, which remained as debts owed by the CEO. Additionally, portions of the withdrawals were categorized as salary advances, which the prosecutor noted were not reported as salaries to tax authorities. Some transactions were not recorded at all because ongoing bookkeeping had ceased in July 2023. The CEO admitted to these actions in court.

As the sole executive member and decision-maker of the dental firm, the CEO’s conduct aggravated the company’s financial situation. The firm was declared insolvent following the fiscal year ending in 2019. The company went bankrupt in September 2023, with assets amounting to nearly €65,000 and liabilities of about €48,000 at the time of bankruptcy.

The district court indicated that the CEO sought significant personal benefits through these actions, which they evaluated as gross misconduct, causing harm to the company’s creditors. The CEO is required to repay the withdrawn funds, totaling around €43,000, with interest, to the bankruptcy estate of the dental clinic. The ruling is not yet final.