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amazing "story" that unfolded at trial. We believe that $106,000
of the total $201,034 found in petitioner's cooler indeed belonged
to Mr. Macias. By storing the money with petitioner, Mr. Macias
followed a pattern: First he stored the money with Mr. Morera,
then with Mr. Chavez, and finally with petitioner. Consequently,
petitioner acted as a conduit or agent for Mr. Macias.
We agree with respondent that a taxpayer's forfeiture of
seized currency does not prevent it from being included in his
gross income. See, e.g., Gambina v. Commissioner, 91 T.C. 826
(1988). However, we disagree with respondent's contention that in
this case substantive evidence exists proving that the $106,000
seized and forfeited was linked to petitioner's drug-related
activities. During cross-examination, petitioner asserted his
Fifth Amendment rights and refused to answer questions posed to him
by respondent's counsel concerning petitioner's possible
involvement in selling drugs. Although we are mindful that an
individual's failure to answer questions may give rise to an
inference that if he had answered, the answers would have harmed
him, Baxter v. Palmigiano, 425 U.S. 308, 316-319 (1976), we do not
believe this inference directly links the $106,000 at issue to an
illegal activity involving petitioner.
Additionally, we disagree with respondent's argument that
because petitioner was a claimant in the State and Federal actions,
the $106,000 at issue must have belonged to him. "A claimant need
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