Karl Racine, Attorney General for the District of Columbia in the United States, has announced that his office will sue business intelligence company MicroStrategy and its co-founder, Michael Saylor, on charges related to tax evasion.
In a Twitter thread on Wednesday, Racine ad a lawsuit against MicroStrategy and its former CEO, Michael Saylor, alleging that he “never paid any income tax in the District of Columbia” and that the company “conspired” to help him avoid paying taxes. According to the attorney general, Saylor owes back taxes on “hundreds of millions of dollars” of income during his time as a Columbia resident.
“With this lawsuit, we are putting residents and businesses on notice that if they enjoy all the benefits of living in our great city while refusing to pay their fair share of taxes, we will hold them accountable,” Racine said.
NEW: Today, we’re suing Michael Saylor – a billionaire tech executive who has lived in the District for more than a decade but has never paid any DC income taxes – for tax fraud.
— AG Karl A. Racine (@AGKarlRacine) August 31, 2022
According to Racine, the charges stem from the District of Columbia Council which amended the district’s False Claims Act to encourage whistleblowers to flag residents who evade tax laws. The Attorney General’s Office has authority to enforce the amended legislation.
In the United States, many high-net-worth individuals are able to consult with legal experts and take advantage of loopholes to reduce their tax burden, drawing criticism from many US lawmakers and residents. However, government officials have also encouraged many companies to locate in their respective jurisdictions by offering tax breaks, as was the case with Amazon offices.
On August 2, Saylor announced that he would step down as CEO of MicroStrategy, a company he helped co-found in 1989, to take on the new role of “CEO.” At the time, Saylor said that dividing up the duties would help the company pursue its “buy and hold Bitcoin” strategy. Former MicroStrategy president Phong Le became CEO of the firm on August 8.
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