When the tax man comes you had better have your check book ready or be out of the country. Wesley Snipes chose the latter msnbc.com gives us this:
Actor Wesley Snipes, indicted by U.S. authorities for tax fraud this week, is filming a movie in the African country of Namibia which has no extradition treaty with Washington, officials said on Friday. The indictment alleges that Snipes failed to file federal income tax returns from 1999 through 2004 and conspired with two accomplices to file two amended returns for Snipes for 1996 and 1997, fraudulently claiming tax refunds of almost $12 million.
Snipes, the star of the “Blade” movie series, is the lead actor in a new movie entitled “Gallowwalker” filming in the Namibian desert near the town of Swakopmund — the same coastal resort where Hollywood superstars Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt had their first child in May.
Man, oh man Wesley what were you thinking? When you are a big shot movie star you pay your taxes! You do it on time and you throw in a few diamonds just in case. You do forget to file for five years.
Snipes needs to get some major help, from a lawyer and a banker. The best lawyer and the most generous banker. He also needs to finish that movie he is on before he leaves South Africa because it’s probably going to be the only bit of money he gets for a while. Let’s hope it’s a blockbuster.
I like Wesley Snipes, he is always a very watchable character in movies, likeable always and he seems like a cool guy. But everyone tries to screw the government and hardly anyone ever gets away with it. I don’t feel sorry that Snipes got caught, it was bound to happen. I feel bad that he thought he could do it in the first place.
It is possible for Snipes to get jail time over this, 16 years at the most. I don’t think anyone deserves to go to jail for that long over money. It always angers me when I see people who are charged with violent crimes such as assault or rape getting a few years while people who are yes, doing wrong by cheating the government but not physically harming anyone get ten or more years. I’m curious to see if Snipes does jail time over this, it may happen, after all Martha Stewart did time just last year.
Jail or not nobody gets away with tax fraud clean. Poor Willie Nelson lost everything in 1990, he owed 16 million in back taxes, and the government took his houses, his recording studios (if it weren’t for his successful album The IRS tapes: Who’ll buy my memories?” he may still be broke).
In life there are two things you can always count on, death and taxes. If Snipes is smart he will pay back what he owes and let the loss motivate him to be more discerning on whos advice he takes in the future.
One good thing for Wesley Snipes fans; he will probably be doing a lot of movies in the next few years.
