Its members allegedly caused more than $530 million in actual losses to consumers, businesses, and financial institutions alike-and it is alleged that the losses they intended to cause amounted to more than $2.2 billion. “As alleged in the indictment, Infraud operated like a business to facilitate cyberfraud on a global scale. “Today’s indictment and arrests mark one of the largest cyberfraud enterprise prosecutions ever undertaken by the Department of Justice,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made the announcement. Attorney Dayle Elieson of the District of Nevada, and Acting Executive Associate Director Derek N. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. The IRS has issued guidance regarding the tax consequences on the use of virtual currencies in IRS Notice 2014-21,which provides that virtual currencies that can be converted into traditional currency are property for tax purposes, and a taxpayer can have a gain or loss on the sale or exchange of a virtual currency, depending on the taxpayer’s cost to purchase the virtual currency (that is, the taxpayer’s tax basis).A federal indictment was unsealed today charging 36 individuals for their alleged roles in the Infraud Organization, an Internet-based cybercriminal enterprise engaged in the large-scale acquisition, sale, and dissemination of stolen identities, compromised debit and credit cards, personally identifiable information, financial and banking information, computer malware, and other contraband.įollowing the return of a nine-count superseding indictment by a Las Vegas, Nevada, grand jury alleging racketeering conspiracy and other crimes, federal, state, local, and international law enforcement authorities arrested 13 defendants from the United States and six countries: Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Kosovo and Serbia.Īcting Assistant Attorney General John P. taxpayers described above, along with other documents relating to their cryptocurrency transactions. Rather, according to the court’s order, the summons seeks information related to the IRS’s “investigation of an ascertainable group or class of persons” that the IRS has reasonable basis to believe “may have failed to comply with internal revenue laws.” According to the copy of the summons filed with the petition, the IRS directed Kraken to produce records identifying the U.S. The United States’ petition does not allege that Kraken has engaged in any wrongdoing in connection with its digital currency exchange business. Today’s order from the Northern District of California grants the IRS permission to serve what is known as a “John Doe” summons on Kraken. On April 1, 2021, a federal court in the District of Massachusetts granted an order authorizing the IRS to serve a similar John Doe summons on Circle, a digital currency exchange headquartered in Boston. Because transactions in cryptocurrencies can be difficult to trace and have an inherently pseudoanonymous aspect, taxpayers may be using them to hide taxable income from the IRS.
“This John Doe summons is part of our effort to uncover those who are trying to skirt reporting and avoid paying their fair share.”Ĭryptocurrency, as generally defined, is a digital representation of value. “There is no excuse for taxpayers continuing to fail to report the income earned and taxes due from virtual currency transactions,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “Those who transact with cryptocurrency must meet their tax obligations like any other taxpayer.” Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Gathering the information in the summons approved today is an important step to ensure cryptocurrency owners are following the tax laws,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. The IRS is seeking the records of Americans who engaged in business with or through Kraken, a digital currency exchanger headquartered in San Francisco, California. taxpayers who conducted at least the equivalent of $20,000 in transactions in cryptocurrency during the years 2016 to 2020. A federal court in the Northern District of California entered an order today authorizing the IRS to serve a John Doe summons on Payward Ventures Inc., and Subsidiaries d/b/a Kraken (Kraken) seeking information about U.S.
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