Dan Horsky, 71, formerly of Rochester, New York, was sentenced to seven months in federal prison for conspiring to defraud the United States and filing a false expatriation statement with the IRS—after hiding more than $220 million in offshore accounts for over 15 years. The former business professor, a citizen of the U.S., U.K., and Israel, exploited nominee accounts in Switzerland to conceal vast wealth, dodging millions in tax obligations while living openly as a U.S. resident.
Horsky, who spent over three decades teaching business administration in New York, made a fortune through a single successful investment in a start-up known as Company A. In 2000, he funneled his assets into a nominee account titled ‘Horsky Holdings’ at a Zurich bank, setting in motion a long-term scheme to shield his finances from the IRS and U.S. Treasury. Despite his academic career, Horsky operated like a financial fugitive—burying transactions behind offshore veils and false identities.
In 2008, Horsky cashed out approximately $80 million from Company A stock but reported less than $7 million in gains on his U.S. tax return, underreporting income by over $40 million. To deepen the deception, the Swiss Bank opened two accounts—one under his admitted U.S. citizenship and another where he falsely claimed to be an Israeli resident. The larger account became the hub of a hidden financial empire that swelled to more than $220 million by 2015.
Horsky maintained full control over the accounts, directing investments—including in another venture, Company B—while falsely distancing himself from ownership. In 2012, as U.S. pressure mounted on Swiss banks, he arranged for an individual, referred to as Person A, to assume nominal control of the accounts. But the ruse didn’t fool IRS Criminal Investigation, which traced the money trail through complex structures and offshore secrecy.
As part of his plea agreement, Horsky paid a staggering $100 million civil penalty to the U.S. Treasury for failing to file Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) and for submitting fraudulent disclosures. The penalty—one of the largest tied to individual tax evasion—is a warning shot to others hiding assets abroad. ‘The days of hiding behind shell corporations and foreign bank secrecy laws are over,’ said Stuart M. Goldberg, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Tax Division.
‘Hiding assets and creating secret accounts in an attempt to evade income taxes is a losing game,’ said Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. ‘Today’s sentence shows that we will continue to prosecute bankers and U.S. citizens who engage in this criminal activity.’ IRS-CI Chief Richard Weber added that agents are relentless: ‘We will continue to unravel complex financial transactions and hold those accountable who dodge the tax system.’ Horsky’s downfall proves that even the most insulated offshore schemes eventually collapse under federal scrutiny.
RELATED: Dan Horsky Pays $100M in Tax Fraud Case
Related Federal Cases
- Dan Horsky Pays $100M in Tax Fraud Case · Washington
- Ivory Coast Diplomat Cops to Tax Fraud, Gets 15 Months · New York
- NY Man Gets 2 Years for $1M Tax Fraud Scheme · West Virginia
- Trump Indicts NY AG James: Retaliation for Fraud Case · New York
- Malik Yousaf Gets 48 Months for 7-Eleven Fraud, Identity Theft · New York
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News