Early cryptocurrency advocate Roger Ver, often referred to by his nickname “Bitcoin Jesus,” has been indicted by US authorities on charges of mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns. The indictment alleges Ver owes at least $48 million in US taxes.
Ver was arrested over the weekend in Spain, with the US Department of Justice seeking his extradition to stand trial in the United States, in the latest case of US authorities cracking down against high-profile crypto entrepreneurs.
According to the indictment, Ver began acquiring Bitcoin in 2011 and while he renounced his US citizenship in 2014, becoming a citizen of St. Kitts and Nevis, US law requires former citizens to report capital gains on certain assets worldwide, including Bitcoin.
The indictment further alleges that Ver failed to disclose the full extent of his Bitcoin holdings to a law firm handling his tax returns, resulting in significant under-reporting of his tax liability.
Prosecutors claim Ver “provided or caused to be provided false or misleading information” that concealed the true value of the Bitcoin holdings he and his companies had. This allegedly led the law firm to prepare tax returns that “substantially undervalued the two companies and their 73,000 Bitcoins and did not report that Ver owned any Bitcoins personally.”
It further details that in November 2017, Ver reportedly sold a large portion of his Bitcoin for approximately $240 million and failed to disclose this sale to his accountant, leading the Internal Revenue Service to miss out on “at least $48 million” in taxes.
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- Source: https://www.cryptocompare.com/email-updates/daily/2024/may/01/
