George Maciel - Page 49

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               (8) Petitioner’s admission that he purposely mislabeled                
          checks to his corporation as loans is also evidence of his                  
          willingness to defraud.  See Solomon v. Commissioner, 732 F.2d              
          1459 (6th Cir. 1984), affg. T.C. Memo. 1982-603; Afshar v.                  
          Commissioner, 692 F.2d 751 (4th Cir. 1982), affg. without                   
          published opinion T.C. Memo. 1981-241.                                      
               The record before the Court clearly and convincingly                   
          demonstrates a pattern of consistent underreporting of income.              
          The record clearly and convincingly shows that petitioner                   
          intentionally concealed significant business operations from his            
          accountants and bookkeeper.  Petitioner’s vague testimony                   
          buttresses our finding.  There can be little doubt that                     
          petitioner’s failure to keep adequate records of all earnings and           
          expenses is material evidence of fraud.  See Otsuki v.                      
          Commissioner, 53 T.C. at 109.  “To hold otherwise would, as the             
          Supreme Court stated in United States v. Johnson, 319 U.S. 503,             
          518 (1943) ‘be tantamount to holding that skillful concealment is           
          an invincible barrier to proof.’”  Id. at 109.  The insufficiency           
          of petitioner’s records, under these circumstances, constitutes a           
          significant indicia of fraud.  Id. at 110.                                  
               3.   Petitioner’s Conviction and Collateral Estoppel                   
               We find petitioner’s guilty plea of knowingly filing false             
          returns for 1991 and 1992 is additional evidence, which ensures             
          us that the imposition of the fraud penalty in this case is                 






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