Northern court ends tax fugitive's run

By DANIEL JACKSON

The Far North was not far enough for a Swiss national trying to escape a prison sentence in the United States for tax fraud.

Mark Inglin, 51, was last night in custody after Whangarei District Court Judge Thomas Everitt decided to send him back to the US to serve a two-year prison sentence for filing false tax returns.

Inglin, who is Swiss by birth but has lived many years in America, was arrested in Kerikeri in June after fleeing the US last year, where a judge had sentenced him to two years in jail and fined him $US10,000 ($24,200).

The sentence followed an audit by tax authorities of a translation service Inglin ran in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The audit found he had not paid $US155,789 of federal taxes between 1993 and 1997 and that he had undeclared accounts in overseas banks and money in accounts under other people's names.

The US judge allowed Inglin to make his own way to prison but Inglin failed to surrender himself and was later found here.

Judge Everitt was not so trusting yesterday when Inglin's counsel, Tony Banbrook, sought bail for his client.

"I am concerned he is a flight risk," said Judge Everitt.

"He would have the resources, ability and motive to find a haven somewhere more amenable to him than New Zealand."

Mr Banbrook had argued that Inglin was not suitable for extradition as he considered the charges were trivial and he would have only received a fine if he committed the crimes in New Zealand.

He said the tax audit had been initiated by Inglin's ex-wife during a messy divorce.

But Crown Solicitor Philip Smith, acting on behalf of the US Government, said Inglin's offending in the US also contained elements of perjury which could qualify him for a prison sentence in New Zealand.

Judge Everitt said Inglin was eligible for extradition.

He said he did not accept arguments from Mr Banbrook that there was no proof that the extradition treaty between New Zealand and the US had been ratified or that the proper diplomatic procedure had not been followed in requesting Inglin's extradition.

Judge Everitt said Inglin's tax offending was involved and deceitful and there was a suggestion it had been done to keep assets from his ex-wife.