Winston Bontrager and Pauline Anderson Convicted of Tax Evasion, Se…

Former western Washington real estate developer Winston Bontrager, 64, and his long-time girlfriend Pauline Anderson, 65, were today convicted in U.S. District Court in Seattle of 25 counts of tax evasion and false statements. The couple was charged with avoiding over $23 million in income taxes through their scheme.

Bontrager, who has a history of tax crimes, was previously convicted for bank fraud in 1983 and defrauding the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System and the IRS in 1994. Anderson was indicted alongside Bontrager in March 2012, and both have been in federal custody since June 2012.

The jury deliberated for three days following a four-week trial, convicting the couple on all counts. Bontrager faces sentencing on November 22, 2013, for his third federal criminal conviction.

During the trial, prosecutors detailed how Bontrager and Anderson filed false tax returns from 2004 to 2009, failing to report over $23 million in income. Over $10 million was moved into foreign bank accounts in Anderson’s name, and their assets were hidden to evade IRS scrutiny. Despite paying little in taxes, the couple lived lavishly, purchasing a luxury condominium and spending millions on credit cards.

Prosecutors emphasized that the case was about fraud, deceit, and evasion, urging jurors to ‘follow the money’. They described Bontrager’s development deals in Vancouver, Washington, where he defrauded business partners and the IRS. Bontrager faces up to five years in prison for each tax count, while Anderson faces similar penalties for her 11 tax counts.

The Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation led the probe, with Assistant United States Attorneys Carl Blackstone and Aravind Swaminathan prosecuting the case.