DOJ Arrests Roger Ver on Tax Fraud Charges
Roger Ver, known as "Bitcoin Jesus" and a notable early Bitcoin investor, has been indicted by the Department of Justice on charges including mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns.
Ver was arrested in Spain over the weekend on these charges, and the U.S. plans to seek his extradition for trial.
The indictment claims that Roger Ver, formerly from Santa Clara, California, ran MemoryDealers.com Inc. and Agilestar.com Inc., both involved in the sale of computer and networking equipment.
Starting in 2011, Ver reportedly began acquiring significant amounts of Bitcoin for himself and his businesses, amassing about 131,000 Bitcoin valued at roughly $240 million by 2014.
In 2014, Ver obtained citizenship in St. Kitts and Nevis and soon after renounced his U.S. citizenship, a move known as expatriation.
This made him subject to U.S. tax regulations, which required him to report capital gains from the sale of his global assets, including Bitcoin, and to pay an "exit tax" on those gains.
According to the indictment, Ver provided misleading information to a law firm and an appraiser, hiding the actual amount of Bitcoin owned by himself and his companies.
This led to the filing of inaccurate tax returns that significantly understated the value of the companies and their Bitcoin holdings.
By 2017, Ver’s companies still possessed about 70,000 Bitcoin, which he is alleged to have sold on cryptocurrency exchanges for around $240 million.
Although he was no longer a U.S. citizen, Ver was reportedly still obligated to report and pay taxes on certain distributions, which he failed to do, allegedly resulting in a loss of over $48 million to the IRS, according to the indictment.
The charges were announced by Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada, with the IRS Criminal Investigation's cybercrimes unit leading the inquiry.
An indictment merely suggests allegations, and all defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty in court.