Four From Ernst & Young
Face Tax-Fraud Charges
By CHAD BRAY
May 30, 2007 11:44 a.m.
NEW YORK -- Four former or current partners of accounting firm Ernst & Young have been charged criminally in connection with the promotion of allegedly fraudulent tax shelters, prosecutors said Wednesday.
In a press release, the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan said the individuals have been charged with a variety of criminal charges, including conspiracy, obstruction of the Internal Revenue Service, false statements and tax evasion.
The individuals charged are Martin Nissenbaum, national director of Ernst & Young's personal income tax and retirement planning practice; Ernst & Young tax partner Richard Shapiro; and former Ernst & Young tax partners Robert Coplan, of Plano, Texas; and Brian Vaughn, of Calhoun, La.
The four individuals worked in a group set up by Ernst & Young to develop tax shelters, first named Value Ideas Produce Extraordinary Results, or Viper, and later named Strategic Individual Solutions Group, or SISG.
Prosecutors have alleged the defendants and others engaged in a scheme from 1998 to 2004 to defraud the IRS by marketing and implementing fraudulent tax shelters.
The shelters were designed to be used by wealthy individuals with taxable income generally in excess of $10 million to $20 million in order to eliminate or reduce their taxes owed, the government said.
E&Y Indictments
-
Demosthenes
- Grand Exalted Keeper of Esoterica
- Posts: 5773
- Joined: Wed Jan 29, 2003 3:11 pm