BRUSSELS -- Manwin Managing Partner Fabian Thylmann was arrested on charges that the adult entertainment conglomerate has evaded taxes in Germany.
Thylmann was arrested at the Brussels airport.
According to a report from Welt.de, German officials seized numerous computers and documents at the offices of Manwin Germany GmbH in Hamburg on Dec. 4.
"Mr. Thylmann currently sits in Belgium in protective custody," Belgian authorities told Welt.de, noting that the arrest warrant was signed in Cologne, Germany.
A spokesman told Welt.de that he could not say whether there are other "suspects" in the investigation.
Based in Luxembourg with offices in Burbank, Calif., Montreal, London, Dublin, Hamburg and Nicosia, Manwin operates Playboy Plus in a licensing deal with Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Playboy Enterprises and also owns blue-chip brands such as Digital Playground, Brazzers and Twistys. In addition, Manwinowns Reality Kings, YouPorn, Spankwire, Webcams Tube8, ExtremeTube, KeezMovies, Mofos, ExtremeTube, JuicyBoys and PornHub.
Manwin officials did not immediately respond for comment to XBIZ at post time.
