ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, December 14, 1995 TAG: 9512140025
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JAN VERTEFEUILLE STAFF WRITER
A Roanoke attorney was found guilty Tuesday of helping a client evade income tax payments by filing false tax returns.
After a seven-day trial, a jury in U.S. District Court in Abingdon deliberated two hours before convicting Douglas D. Wilson of two counts of tax fraud.
Wilson was found guilty of aiding and abetting the evasion of tax payments and corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the administration of the Internal Revenue Code.
Wilson has maintained that his actions on behalf of client Arthur Odell Rogers, the operator of at least eight coal mines and related companies in Southwest Virginia, were legal.
The government presented evidence that Wilson submitted forms to the Internal Revenue Service that concealed assets Rogers controlled, and that Wilson knew money from one company account was transferred to an employee's account to prevent the IRS from seizing it.
Wilson said in a statement given by his law firm that he plans to ask the trial judge to overturn the verdict. Failing that, he said he would appeal "to remedy this error."
"I was extremely disappointed in the decision of the jury, and I am concerned that they were unable to understand all of the facts," Wilson's statement said.
He is a partner in the Roanoke law firm Parvin, Wilson, Barnett & Guynn but was out of town Wednesday, a spokeswoman said. A statement by the firm said it "continues to believe in his innocence and give him all our support."
Wilson was charged with preparing records that concealed Rogers' assets between 1985 and 1991 and with aiding and abetting evasion of federal taxes from 1985 until the present.
Rogers owed more than $600,000 in back taxes and penalties, according to the government. He ran various coal mining operations in Virginia, all of which apparently are defunct, as well as others in West Virginia and Kentucky. They include Victory Mining Corp., Symcor Ltd., Jasco Excavating Co. and M&T Equipment Co.
Rogers pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to defraud the IRS and was sentenced in July to 29 months in prison. He must pay the IRS $1.36 million in restitution.
The investigation into tax fraud at Rogers' mining operations began in West Virginia several years ago; the U.S. attorney's office in Virginia became involved when Wilson became a target. A criminal investigator from the IRS also assisted.
Wilson has said that the steps he took for his client were proper and that his advice to Rogers was to pay the taxes owed. The government says Wilson crossed the line.
"I never did anything improper, nor did I interfere with the government's collection process,'' Wilson said after his indictment in June.
Wilson faces up to eight years in prison and the possibility of disbarment.
LENGTH: Medium: 59 linesby CNB