Tax crime is timeless. As long as there are taxes, there will be methods and modes—some legal, some illegal, and some by accident—that are used to work around tax regulations. Sometimes, current events provide us the opportunity to sketch how allegations might be handled—and life-altering outcomes avoided.
Recently, a Florida man was sentenced to three years in federal prison for obstructing justice and other criminal tax matters. Here is the rundown:
- The defendant was well-educated, held high-paying C-suite positions, and has a supportive family. He is currently 67, was convicted in January of this year and sentenced to three years in prison in July, 2020.
- Between 1999 and 2014, this fellow decided not to pay taxes. By 2014, his back-tax bill was hovering around $400,000. Not surprisingly, an IRS criminal investigation ensued.
Let’s pause here. A wealthy, well-educated tax payer decides to stage a one-man tax revolt and refuses to pay taxes. This is not unusual nor is it uncommon. People fail to file tax returns and a lot of people take issue with paying taxes. As could be expected, the Internal Revenue Service turned up data on the defendant and proceeded to inquire about the tax bill.
This is where an experienced criminal tax attorney can first be of critical assistance. Oftentimes, we work with high-wealth individuals who have not paid taxes, or they have been involved in a structured financial scheme that could be on the wrong side of legal. In this story, here is where a good legal voice can help you out of your troubles, possibly without damage to your career or liberty. But the story continues:
- The IRS deployed standard collection methods including liens and levies on the defendants’ accounts, paycheck, and retirement accounts.
- When enforcement and collection efforts came into play, the defendant took steps to delay, deny, and defend the growing criminal tax matter in which he was involved. His actions included providing falsified documentation to his employer to avoid payment of federal taxes while at the same time writing checks worth $1.9 million to the IRS from a closed bank account (note to self—never pass bad checks to the IRS), and then threatening IRS agents with legal action.
From here the story goes downhill—arrest, trial, prison sentence, restitution, and eventually, probation.
Most taxpayers know attempting to cheat and deceive the IRS is not going to end well. Representation by defense counsel that is initiated when allegations are at hand, but arrests are not yet made, is an important intervention. But a tax attorney well-experienced with criminal defense can have a big impact before, during, and after trial on the matter.
The names change, the circumstances are sometimes novel, but criminal tax audits generally always mean one thing—retain an experienced criminal tax attorney as soon as possible to protect your livelihood, your family, and your future.
Experienced tax attorneys provide personalized legal service on civil and criminal tax matters in Cleveland and Chicago
The legal team at Robert J. Fedor, Esq., LLC provides strategic guidance and skilled legal representation if you face allegations of tax fraud or tax litigation. Call us at 800-579-0997 today.
