Opinion ID: 661484
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Affirmative Evasive Acts

Text: 6 Wisenbaker contends on this appeal that there was not a scintilla of evidence that Houston M. Wisenbaker, Jr. didn't pay all of the federal excise taxes in question. 6 That is not precisely the issue in this case: Wisenbaker is charged not only with evading his own taxes but also those of his customers. 7 We shall deal with Wisenbaker's objection, though, on his own terms. 7 We begin by noting that Wisenbaker conceded at trial that he had failed to file quarterly excise tax returns. 8 There is also evidence in the record that Wisenbaker took great pains to conceal his financial dealings. He conducted his business affairs mostly in cash. He hired Rebecca Morgan as secretary-treasurer of one of his companies but would not allow her to set up accounting records for the company. When Morgan attempted to set up accounts-receivable records, Wisenbaker destroyed them. 9 When state authorities asked Wisenbaker about state fuels taxes he owed, he began shredding boxes of documents. 10 There is ample evidence from which a reasonable jury could have concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that Wisenbaker took affirmative acts to attempt to evade payment of federal excise taxes.