The United States Justice Department sued former Donald Trump campaign adviser and republican politician Roger Stone and his wife, Nydia, for having $2 million in unpaid federal income taxes and fees, a complaint filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Fort Lauderdale Division, showed
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th April, 2021) The United States Justice Department sued former Donald Trump campaign adviser and republican politician Roger Stone and his wife, Nydia, for having $2 million in unpaid Federal income taxes and fees, a complaint filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Fort Lauderdale Division, showed.
The lawsuit states that the politician and his wife used a commercial body to "shield their personal income from enforced collection and fund a lavish lifestyle despite owing nearly $2 million in unpaid taxes, interest and penalties".
According to the legal action, the couple underpaid their income taxes by $1,590,361 from 2007 to 2011 and by $407,036 in 2018.
"This is yet another example of the Democrats weaponizing the Justice Department in violation of the rule of law ... I will fight these politically motivated charges and I will prevail again," Stone said in a statement on Friday as quoted by CNN.
Further statements in the suit show Stone depositing $1 million into accounts belonging to Drake Ventures, a commercial entity instead of personal accounts and therefore confused collection efforts. The money was then used to fund personal expenses including the purchase of a townhouse in Fort Lauderdale, the lawsuit alleges.
"The Stones intended to defraud the United States by maintaining their assets in Drake Ventures' accounts, which they completely controlled, and using these assets to purchase the Stone Residence in the name of the Bertran Trust," the lawsuit said.
Reports show that the Stones used the Bertran Family Revocable Trust, which is controlled by Nydia Stone, to purchase their townhouse.
Stone was previously sentenced to serve 40 months in prison in 2020 for lying to Congress about his attempts to connect with WikiLeaks to allegedly find dirt on Donald Trump's 2016 political rival, Hilary Clinton, however, then president Trump commuted Stone's sentence.
