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On Friday, the Justice Department hit Roger Stone again, this time for failing to pay nearly $2 million in taxes, penalties, and interest. It was less than four months ago that Donald Trump pardoned his longtime advisor.
According to the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida, Stone and his wife, Nydia Stone, failed to fully pay their taxes from 2007 to 2011. In 2018, Stone filed separately but again failed to pay his full tax bill. The complaint also alleges that the Stones used a corporation, Drake Ventures, to shield their money from the IRS in recent years. “The Stones’ use of Drake Ventures to hold their funds allowed them to shield their personal income from enforced collection and fund a lavish lifestyle despite owing nearly $2 million,” the complaint states. The Stones were well aware of their debt to the United States and in 2017 entered into an agreement to pay nearly $20,000 per month to the IRS.
In January 2019, Stone was indicted as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into the 2016 election. Shortly thereafter, the couple created a new trust, bought a new home in the name of the trust, and stopped paying the IRS. “The Stones intended to defraud the United States by maintaining their assets in Drake Ventures’ accounts, which they completely controlled, and using these assets to purchase the Stone Residence in the name of the Bertran Trust,” the complaint reads.
In November 2019, a jury convicted Stone of lying to Congress, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering and sentenced him to 40 months in prison. After his pardon last December, Stone still failed to stay out of trouble. He has recently come under scrutiny for his association with members of the Oath Keepers, an extremist group. Six members who acted as bodyguards for Stone participated in the January 6 Capitol attack.
Stone told the Associated Press that the government’s tax case against him is “politically motivated” and that its last case against him left him broke. “The American people will learn, in court, that I am on the verge of bankruptcy and that there are no assets for the government to take,” he said.
