Mexico Tax Prosecutor: Pay Up, Or We Are Taking Your Company

The prosecutor forcing Mexico’s recent record haul of tax settlements is promising more deals. He has a simple recipe: Play hardball with companies, criminal charges included.

In just over a month President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s administration has convinced companies including Wal-Mart de Mexico and Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB to pay a total of more than $1 billion in a flurry of unexpected tax settlements.

While some Mexican business representatives say the tax crackdown is akin to “fiscal terrorism” where rights are being trampled, tax prosecutor Carlos Romero Aranda says he’s only “taking back the reins” after previous administrations ...