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Wanted: Dr. Dino’s Payroll Taxes
A Florida evangelist and entrepreneur who allegedly paid his employees in cash and labeled them “missionaries” to avoid payroll taxes has been arrested on 58 federal charges, including failing to pay $473,818 in taxes and threatening investigators.
The arrest of Kent Hovind, who owns the defunct Dinosaur Adventure Land in Pensacola, is the latest round in Hovind’s 17-year battle with the IRS. Hovind, who sometimes calls himself “Dr. Dino,” has said that he is employed by God, receives no income, has no expenses, and owns no property.
A well-known creationist, Hovind has received notoriety for his standing offer to pay $250,000 to anyone who can provide scientific evidence of evolution.
Of the 58 charges, 44 were filed against Hovind and his wife, Jo, for evading bank reporting requirements when they withdrew a total of $430,500 from AmSouth Bank between July 2001 and August 2002, the Pensacola News Journal reports.
In the federal indictment unsealed last week, Kent Hovind is accused of failing to pay $473,818 in federal income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes on employees at his Creation Science Evangelism/Ministry between March 31, 2001, and January 31, 2004.
As part of the ministry, Hovind operated the Dinosaur Adventure Land, which included rides, a museum, and a science center. He also sold literature, videos, CDs, and other materials and provided lecture services and live debates for a fee, the News Journal reports.
Source: PensacolaNewsJournal.com