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determining whether any deficiency or underpayment of tax is due
to fraud. See Stoltzfus v. United States, supra. The consistent
and substantial understatement of income is itself evidence of
fraud. See Laurins v. Commissioner, supra. Petitioner has been
convicted of tax evasion under section 7201 for his 1989 tax
year. His conviction was the result of a plea of guilty. “A
guilty plea is as much a conviction as a conviction following
jury trial. The elements of criminal tax evasion and civil tax
fraud are identical.” Gray v. United States, 708 F.2d 243, 246
(6th Cir. 1983), affg. T.C. Memo. 1981-1. This Court and
numerous other Federal courts “have held that a conviction for
Federal income tax evasion, either upon a plea of guilty, or upon
a jury verdict of guilt, conclusively establishes fraud in a
subsequent civil tax fraud proceeding through application of the
doctrine of collateral estoppel.” Id.; see also Fontneau v.
United States, 654 F.2d 8, 10 (1st Cir. 1981) (guilty plea);
Arctic Ice Cream Co. v. Commissioner, 43 T.C. 68, 75-76 (1964)
(guilty plea). We therefore hold that petitioner is collaterally
estopped from asserting he is not liable for the addition to tax
prescribed in section 6651(f) in relation to his 1989 tax year.
Petitioner argues he did not intend to evade taxes he knew
to be owing. He claims that he wanted to, and intended to,
eventually pay his taxes. He claims that he failed to file
returns only because he believed that if he filed returns, it
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