The importance of paying over employment taxes cannot be overstated. Larry Kudsk, a Berkeley construction businessman, learned this the hard way recently when he was indicted on seven counts of failing to pay over employment taxes he withheld from employee’s...
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Tax Crimes
IRS Top 10 Criminal Cases of 2021
From bitcoin exchange owners to a former pastor, the IRS identifies the top 10 criminal cases of 2021 which includes frauds that were committed against charitable organizations, unsuspecting consumers of solar products, illegal investment scams known as Ponzi schemes,...
Tax Fraud Teacher Charged
Traci Austin, the owner of Emeryville Tax Services in Brentwood, California, has been charged with not only preparing fraudulent tax returns for her clients, but also teaching students how to manipulate returns for profit as well. Austin allegedly charged her students...
Employment Tax Fraud Remains Top Priority of DOJ
Last week, the Department of Justice reported on several employment tax fraud cases. In Virginia, James C. Jones, Jr., an ambulance business owner, was arraigned and charged with multiple crimes including tax evasion and filing false tax returns. Mr. Jones allegedly...
South Dakota – the New Switzerland for Bank Secrecy?
Switzerland, Singapore, and South Dakota all have something in common…these jurisdictions are favored by the extremely wealthy for bank secrecy, which often includes tax evasion, money laundering, and other crimes including worker exploitation. In 2014, Trident Trust...
Rubber Checks Meet the Tax Evasion Road
Tax evaders can certain be creative when it comes to evading the assessment of tax, or evading the payment of tax, but they often get caught. This was the case for a Utah chiropractor who used a variety of tactics to avoid paying the IRS nearly $350,000 in tax. ...
IRS Urges Tax Professionals’ Help
The IRS is asking for help from tax professionals. This week begins the IRS’ 2021 Security Summit – a five-week campaign focusing on raising awareness of tax-related identity theft. The summit is aimed at tax professionals, who are often key targets of hackers and...
IRS’ Annual Dirty Dozen List of Tax Scams
Last week, the IRS concluded its annual summertime “Dirty Dozen” – their list of the worst and most common tax scams to beware of. This year bred new scams relating to the pandemic, including Economic Impact Payment theft and Unemployment Insurance fraud. There was...
New IRS Division Announced — Tax Scheme Promoters Beware
The Office of Promoter Investigations (OPI) was announced yesterday as the IRS’ latest division targeting compliance issues. OPI will focus on those individuals who promote and peddle tax fraud and tax avoidance schemes. Before the creation of OPI, the IRS’ Small...
The DOJ Wants You to Know…
The Department of Justice’s Tax Division’s success over the last year is a reminder to all taxpayers to make sure they are reporting and filing taxes timely and correctly. Throughout 2020, the Tax Division helped investigate and prosecute a multitude of tax offenses,...
