With Tax Day Imminent, a Vinings Doctor is Arraigned for Tax Fraud

ATLANTA –Dr. Michael Jon Kell has been arraigned on four counts of tax evasion and one count of interfering with the administration of the Internal Revenue laws. Kell allegedly engaged in a two-decade scheme to evade federal taxes by funneling millions of dollars in assets through a church he created.

“Kell claimed a vow of poverty, but allegedly funneled over $2 million through a church he controlled to avoid paying income taxes on the money he earned,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn.  “With the deadline for filing your 2015 tax return only days away, we urge citizens in our district to think twice about the potential consequences of not truthfully reporting their income and paying their taxes.”  

“Tax evasion is not a victimless crime,” said Veronica Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation. “We all pay when others swindle the government. To maintain faith in our nation's tax system, honest taxpayers need to be reassured that everyone is paying their fair share, including Michael Jon Kell. The IRS and Department of Justice remain determined and vigilant in ferreting out such schemes to cheat the honest taxpayers.”

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court:  The indictment alleges the lengths to which Kell went to avoid paying taxes. Although no longer a practicing medical doctor, he developed numerous patented technologies and was a consultant, which generated millions of dollars in income over the years. To hide this income, he founded and served as the “pastor” of the First Meliorite Church, a church he claimed was a branch of the Universal Life Church.

Claiming to be under a “vow of poverty” that precluded him from earning income, Kell directed his substantial income and assets into bank accounts belonging to the church—all of which were under Kell’s exclusive control.  He used these accounts to cover all of his personal expenses including; overseas vacations, dining out, high-end clothing purchases, online dating services, and private school tuition for his children. Kell also transferred ownership of his multi-million dollar residence in Vinings, Georgia, several times over the years to various entities he created and controlled, all in an effort to protect that property from creditors, including the Internal Revenue Service.

Dr. Michael Jon Kell, 66, of Vinings, Georgia, was arraigned by United States Magistrate Judge Janet F. King.

In an unrelated tax fraud case, three individuals, Lorri Jackson-Brown, Cherri Dallas, and Gabrielle Rhodes, have been charged with 41 counts including conspiracy, mail fraud and theft of government money.  The three defendants are alleged to have conspired with each other and with a fourth individual, Wayne Pettway, to register sham businesses with the Georgia Secretary of State, obtain Employer Identification Numbers (EINs) for businesses, and file fraudulent tax returns in the names of those businesses. The filed tax returns allegedly claimed fictitious income amounts, deductions and fuel excise credits, all for the purpose of generating fraudulent tax refunds. 

Lorri Jackson-Brown, 51, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Cherri Dallas, 45, of Atlanta, Georgia, and Gabrielle Rhodes, 35 of Loganville, Georgia were indicted on March 22, 2016.  Wayne Pettway, 53, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit theft of government money on November 21, 2014.

Assistant United States Attorney Lynsey M. Barron is prosecuting the Kell case.  Assistant United States Attorney Stephen H. McClain is prosecuting the above cases.

Members of the public are reminded that the indictments only contain charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendants’ guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

These cases are being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.