21
Petitioner maintains that his Bohannon, S.A. investment
records were destroyed in the riots following the United States'
invasion of Panama in December 1989. Clinton Wade testified that
petitioner told him (in a phone call during the riots) that the
floor where petitioner's office was located had been ransacked.
Petitioner also contends that his testimony is sufficient since
it is uncontroverted and is supported by respondent's handling of
earlier audits.
We disagree. We are not convinced that petitioner's records
were destroyed in riots after the December 1989 U.S. invasion of
Panama. Petitioner offered no corroboration such as photographs
of damaged premises. More importantly, petitioner apparently did
not try to reconstruct his records from other sources. A
taxpayer's inability or refusal to produce records does not
relieve him or her of the burden of proof. Figueiredo v.
Commissioner, 54 T.C. 1508, 1511-1512 (1970), affd. per order 73-
2 USTC par. 9713 (9th Cir. 1973). When a taxpayer's records have
been lost or destroyed, the taxpayer may substantiate deductions
through other credible evidence. E.g., Williams v. Commissioner,
T.C. Memo. 1994-275; Thorpe v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1992-160.
Petitioners apparently did not try to do so. Finally,
petitioners first reported that they had sold Bohannon, S.A.
stock in 1982. The earlier audits were of their 1976 and 1980
returns, so those earlier audits do not support this claim.
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