Colorado Business Owner Indicted for Tax Evasion

A grand jury in Denver, Colorado, returned an indictment on Jan. 24, which was unsealed today, charging a health care products business owner and landlord with tax evasion and failing to file personal tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer for the District of Colorado. 

According to the indictment, Craig Walcott, of Monument, Colorado, attempted to evade payment of his 2005 through 2007 federal income taxes and failed to file his 2012 through 2014 personal tax returns.  The indictment alleges that in April of 2010, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) assessed Walcott taxes, penalties and interest of more than $450,000 for tax years 2005 through 2007.  Walcott allegedly then sought to prevent the IRS from collecting the taxes owed.  According to the indictment, Walcott filed fraudulent tax returns underreporting his income, transferred property that he owned into the names of nominee entities, created and filed false documents with multiple county clerk offices to make it appear that properties he owned were encumbered, and fired a property management company to prevent it from complying with an IRS levy ordering that rent proceeds received by Walcott be paid to the IRS.  The indictment further alleges that Walcott did not file his 2012 through 2014 personal tax returns.

If convicted, Walcott faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison on the tax evasion count and one year in prison on each of the failure to file counts.  He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. 

An indictment merely alleges that a crime has been committed, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Troyer commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and   Trial Attorneys Lee Langston and Andrew Kameros of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.