John O. Green, Thomas Selgas, Money Laundering, Texas 2023
Attorney and Client Convicted of Conspiring to Defraud the IRS
A federal jury in Texas has found attorney John O. Green, 64, and his client Thomas Selgas, 59, guilty of conspiring to defraud the United States and tax evasion. The jury returned the guilty verdicts on April 14, 2023 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
According to the evidence presented at trial, Selgas conspired with Green to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by obstructing the agency from assessing and collecting Selgas’s $1.1 million in outstanding taxes. When the IRS made efforts to collect the outstanding taxes, Selgas concealed funds by using Green’s Interest on Lawyers Trust Account (IOLTA) rather than using accounts in his own name.
An IOLTA is a bank account used by a lawyer to hold money in trust for clients. From 2007 to 2017, Selgas deposited proceeds from the sale of gold coins and other income into Green’s IOLTA and Green would then pay the Selgases’ personal expenses, including their credit card bills, from that account.
Selgas and Green also filed a false tax return on behalf of MyMail, Ltd., an intellectual property development and licensing partnership Selgas co-founded, omitting a substantial portion of the partnership’s income.
As a result of the guilty verdicts, Selgas faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for each of the conspiracy and tax evasion counts. Green faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy count. They also face a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.
The investigation was conducted by the IRS - Criminal Investigation, and the case was prosecuted by Tax Division Trial Attorneys Robert A. Kemins and Mara Strier. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman thanked the agents and prosecutors for their work on the case.
The Tax Division enforces the nation’s tax laws, including investigating and prosecuting tax evasion and other forms of tax fraud. Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
The case is being prosecuted by the Justice’s Tax Division. U.S. District Judge Karen Gren Scholer will set sentencing at a later date.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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