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available to evaluate petitioner's contention is petitioner's
argument itself. While we have little doubt that petitioner's
accountants, particularly Lee, were apprised of the nature of the
payment arrangement between Besco and petitioner, we refrain from
concluding that these accountants instructed petitioner to take
deductions for expenses knowing that such expenses were not
incurred.
We find petitioner's argument with respect to reliance on
his tax advisers to be without merit.
Statute of Limitations
Petitioner asserts that the statute of limitations under
section 6501(a) precludes assessment and collection of the
deficiencies in and additions to tax determined by respondent.
Respondent, on the other hand, contends that the statute of
limitations does not bar assessment and collection because
petitioner filed fraudulent returns for each taxable year at
issue.
Section 6501(a) provides the general rule that a tax must be
assessed within 3 years of the filing of a return. Section
6501(c)(1) provides an exception to the general rule in cases
where a false or fraudulent return is filed by a taxpayer with
the intent to evade tax. If the exception set forth in section
6501(c)(1) is applicable, assessment may be made at any time. As
we have concluded that respondent has established by clear and
convincing evidence that petitioner fraudulently intended to
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