A federal jury has convicted six defendants in a $60 million nationwide tax fraud conspiracy.
According to the Justice Department, the six participated in a nearly decade-long scheme to sell fake domestic and foreign trusts through the now-defunct Aegis Co. The defendants allegedly diverted income from businesses into sham trusts for about 650 clients while hiding hundreds of millions of dollars of income. The Justice Department claimed the scheme resulted in a $60 million tax loss for the federal government.
The defendants were indicted in 2004 after a lengthy undercover investigation by IRS agents code-named "Operation Trust Me." Two other defendants in the same case, and two others in separate cases in Chicago involving the "abusive trust" scheme, have already pleaded guilty.
Nationwide, the Chicago-based investigation has resulted in convictions of more than 30 defendants, with charges still pending against approximately 30 other defendants around the country, including in Florida, Illinois, New York, Ohio and West Virginia.
