Melvin Collins, 2020 T. C. Memo. 50, filed 4/23/20, besides having “…a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering, a master of business administration degree in finance, and a master of science degree in applied mathematics and computer science,” (2020 T. C. Memo. 50, at p. 6), ran his tax prep business out of his wife’s basement.

And in the four years at issue, Mel turned out around a thousand returns, not counting his own, because for two of those years he didn’t file at all, and got hit for fraudulently failing to file. The other two were late.

While Judge Tamara Ashford (I can’t find a cognomen to suit) finds Mel and his wife Nikta “genuine and candid” on the stand, (2020 T. C. Memo. 50, at p. 25) that doesn’t make up for the want of evidence. Candid. self-serving, uncorroborated testimony is still not evidence. So Mel goes down for Section 6663 fraud.

What draws me to this case (which is just another indocumentado) is the twenty-two (count ‘em, twenty-two) bank accounts that Mel was running at five different banks.

Mel must have picked up a whole lot of toasters.

The RA who did the bank deposits reconstruction should get a vacation.