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fraud. "The summons had no time limit, was never withdrawn, and
* * * required the recipient to retain--indefinitely--the
documents within its scope." United States v. Administrative
Enters., Inc., 46 F.3d at 673.
Gallenberger and Weisgal claim that records had been
discarded pursuant to a 3-year retention policy based on the
normal 3-year statute of limitations for assessing tax
deficiencies. Yet the records they destroyed related to returns
that were being audited and were the subject of IRS
administrative summonses. We think that such a 3-year retention
policy could not justify the destruction of corporate minutes,
stock ownership records, or resolutions by the boards of
directors. Moreover, some of the entities involved were trusts
or corporations owned by trusts. Corporate officers and
directors, as well as trustees of trusts, are often required to
account to shareholders and beneficiaries for periods greater
than 3 years. None of the individuals involved with the various
entities (Gallenberger, Weisgal, Meyers, and Schott) acted in any
independent manner. They all acted as directed by Kanter. It is
clear that they destroyed the records at Kanter's direction.
Kanter, a tax professional who represents clients before the
IRS and this Court, is aware of the need for documentation and
records to support the items reported on tax returns. In light
of that knowledge, coupled with other evidence, we find that his
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