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earned by Towers Construction, West Florida Gas issued rebate
checks listing the payee as either Briggs or Jimmy Morris (Mr.
Morris).3
Each rebate check that was issued after 1985, with one
exception, was either cashed by one of the petitioners or
deposited in one of their personal banking accounts.4 Attached
as the appendix is a schedule detailing the West Florida Gas
rebate payments received by Briggs and the Morrises. The total
rebate payments were as follows:
Year Briggs The Morrises
1986 $50,677.50 $38,497.50
1987 14,355.00 21,315.00
1988 43,500.00 38,280.00
Total 108,532.50 98,092.50
On their Federal income tax returns, as originally filed,
neither petitioners nor Towers Construction reported as income
the West Florida Gas rebate checks that had been issued in the
individual name of either Briggs or Mr. Morris. On October 20,
1994, Briggs and Mr. Morris were each convicted by the U.S.
3 William Webb (Webb), an employee of West Florida Natural
Gas, Inc. (West Florida Gas), handled the part of the rebate
program in which Towers Construction Co. of Panama City, Inc.
(Towers Construction), was participating. Webb, now deceased,
was Mr. Morris’ first cousin. In 1987 and 1988, Webb embezzled
between $20,000 and $100,000 from West Florida Gas. In July
1989, Webb pled guilty to grand theft.
4 The one exception relates to a $20,445 check issued by
West Florida Gas to Towers Construction on Jan. 30, 1986, which
was deposited into Towers Construction’s bank account and then
split equally between Briggs and Sandra Morris (Mrs. Morris).
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