Corona Man Sentenced for $1.2M Tax Fraud Over Stan Lee Memorabilia

RIVERSIDE, California – A Riverside County man was sentenced to a whopping 12 months and one day in federal prison for filing false income tax returns after selling Stan Lee-signed memorabilia and receiving more than $1.2 million in proceeds which he never reported to the IRS.

Mac Martin Anderson, 59, of Corona, was sentenced by United States District Judge Kenly Kiya Kato, who also ordered him to pay $482,833 in restitution. Anderson pleaded guilty on March 11 to two counts of willfully subscribing to a false tax return.

From 2015 to 2018, Anderson had a personal relationship with Marvel Comics publisher Stan Lee and sold Marvel-related items bearing Lee’s autograph to various dealers, brokers and fans at comic conventions. In exchange for selling these memorabilia, Anderson received payments from buyers, typically in the form of cash or checks. These payments were considered regular income by the IRS and should have been reported on Anderson’s income tax return each year that he received money.

For tax years 2015 through 2018, Anderson received reportable income from memorabilia sales of at least approximately $1,236,485. Anderson admitted that the tax due and owing on such income was approximately $482,833.

The IRS Criminal Investigation investigated this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Aveis of the Major Frauds Section and Sarah E. Spielberger of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section prosecuted this case.

Anderson’s scheme to evade taxes on his Stan Lee memorabilia sales was a brazen one, but ultimately, it caught up with him. As he begins his 12-month and 1-day sentence, Anderson will be forced to confront the consequences of his actions and pay back the nearly half-million dollars in restitution he owes.