As published in the Winter Park/Maitland Observer, Thursday Jan. 3, 2012 Edition Offers... Read More »
Florida Man Convicted for Unreported Foreign Account
If you own or have signature authority over a foreign account and put in the name of another entity in order to hide it from the IRS or avoid the FBAR disclosure requirements, you can count on a criminal prosecution if the IRS catches you. Wolfgang Roessel has been convicted of filing a false tax return, a…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Criminal Tax, Voluntary disclosureSinger Lauryn Hill Guilty of Failing to File Tax Returns
The Associated Press reports that singer Lauryn Hill pleaded guilty to failing to file tax returns on more than $1.5 million she earned from 2005 through 2007. Hill’s attorney said she plans on paying the back taxes, interest and penalties before she is sentenced in November. Ms. Hill claimed that she didn’t pay her taxes because ”she withdrew…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Back Taxes, Criminal Tax, Unfiled ReturnsIRS OFFSHORE VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE AMNESTY
Peter Pappas discusses the IRS’s extension of the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Intiative (OVDI). Taxpayers with unreported foreign accounts and unreported foreign income are urged to come forward and participate in the OVDI program to avoid serious civil and criminal penalties. This is a great opportunity and one that every offshore account holder should seriously consider. Call…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Podcasts, Voluntary disclosureIRS Paid Illegal Immigrants $4.2 Billion in Fraudulent Child Care Credits
Paul Caron reports that the rumor that illegal immigrants received $4.2 billion in fraudulent Child Care tax credit payments from the IRS is true: Following up on last week’s post, Illegal Immigrants’ Child Tax Credit Fraud Costs IRS Billions: FactCheck.org, Tax Credits for Illegal Immigrants: Q: Does the IRS pay billions in tax refunds to…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Credits, Tax CrimesDeath (by Suicide) and Taxes
Tony Nitti of Double Taxation has an interesting story about the tax evasion of a woman who sold suicide kits: [W]hile a 92-year old retired school teacher would never be confused with a legendary criminal of Capone’s ilk, Sharlotte Hydorn shared one thing with Big Al: it again took the IRS to put an end to Hydorn’s …
Read Full Article Categorized in: Tax CrimesShocker: Tax Preparation Outfit Named “Mo’ Money Taxes” isn’t Legit
James Maule tells the story of a tax preparation company called Mo’ Money Taxes: One of my readers alerted me to a story of which I had been unaware. It involves a tax return preparation enterprise that has created nightmares for its clients. The story involves a business called Mo’ Money Taxes, which is based…
Read Full Article Categorized in: News, Regulation of Tax Preparers, Tax Crimes, Tax TipsNew York Times: Global Crackdown on Tax Crimes Intensifies
David Jolly of the New York Times reports that the United States, France, German and Great Britain are working together offshore and other types of tax evasion: The global body that sets standards for combating money laundering and terrorist financing said Thursday that governments should treat tax crimes as a red flag for other types…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Criminal Tax, Voluntary disclosureFormer IRS Agent & Tax Preparer Orders Hit on Former Clients
Fox News reports that a former IRS agent whose tax preparation business catered to a wealthy clientele is accused of ordering at least two former customers killed as they prepared to testify against him on fraud charges: Federal prosecutors say the targets were key witnesses against Steven Martinez, 50, who was charged last year with stealing …
Read Full Article Categorized in: News, Tax CrimesTax Protester Cindy Sheehan Exploits Son’s Death to Avoid Paying Taxes
“Bush’s main goal is to kill as many servicemen as possible.” – Cindy Sheehan – “My son was killed in 2004. I am not paying my taxes for 2004. You killed my son, George Bush, and I don’t owe you a penny…you give my son back and I’ll pay my taxes. Come after me (for…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Absurd Tax Protester Arguments, NewsThree Bombs Explode at Italian Tax Collection Office
Reuters reports that three explosive devices blew up outside the Naples offices of Equitalia, a state agency that collects overdue taxes and fines, breaking windows but injuring no one on Monday night, a police official told Reuters: Police said no group had claimed responsibility for the attack on the building on Corso Meridionale near Naples central…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Tax Collections, Tax CrimesTax Preparer Goes to Jail
WebCPA reports that a New Jersey tax preparer was sentenced Wednesday to six months in prison for preparing false tax returns for numerous clients that resulted in an estimated tax loss to the federal government of between $30,000 and $80,000. Newark-based tax preparer Carlo St. Jean, 40, pleaded guilty midway through the trial to seven of…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Regulation of Tax Preparers, Tax CrimesIt’s Easy to Steal IRS Refunds
Two years ago we addressed the IRS’s flawed refund procedure in False Refund Schemes and Backwards IRS Return Processing Rules. Today, Jay Weaver of the Miami Herald gives a distressing update in Scammers Steal IRS Refunds with Ease: “We are seeing defendants once involved in other types of crimes [such as drug trafficking] getting involved in identity-theft schemes,…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Individual Taxation, IRS Procedure, News, Tax CrimesSupporters of Tax Scofflaw Ai Weiwei Expose Their Wee Wees
From Kelly Phillips-Erb aka TaxGirl: Talk about the naked truth. Fans of beleaguered artist Ai Weiwei have tapped the power of the internet to show their support… by posing naked. Ai Weiwei was charged with tax evasion earlier this year, a charge that he claims is related to his outspoken criticism of the Chinese government.…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Satire, Tax CrimesMore Swiss Banks to Disclose Names to IRS
Accounting Today reports that one of Switzerland’s oldest banks, Clariden Leu, has become the latest to cooperate with U.S. tax authorities in disclosing the names of American investors: The bank has begun notifying some of its U.S. customers that it plans to reveal their names and account information to the Internal Revenue Service, according to…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Announcements, International Taxation, IRS Audits, News, Tax CrimesIRS Continues to Battle Tax Refund Fraud
WebCPA reports that the IRS increased the number of fraudulent tax refund claims it detected and stopped during the 2011 tax-filing season by 171 percent over the previous year: As of April 30, 2011, the IRS had identified 775,723 tax returns with $4.6 billion claimed in fraudulent refunds and prevented the issuance of $4.4 billion,…
Read Full Article Categorized in: IRS Audits, IRS Procedure, Regulation of Tax Preparers, Tax Crimes