A federal grand jury in Birmingham, Alabama, returned an indictment today charging a Shelby County chiropractor with tax evasion, filing false tax returns and obstructing the IRS.
According to the indictment, Gary Forrest Edwards, of Shelby County, was a chiropractor and owned Hoover Health & Wellness Center. In 2015, Edwards allegedly agreed to file missing income tax returns for 2009 through 2013 with the IRS. The indictment further alleges that Edwards – despite filing the returns as agreed and accurately reporting millions of dollars in income – did not pay any of the $2.4 million in taxes he reported he owed.
When the IRS began trying to collect the unpaid taxes in 2015, and continuing until 2023, Edwards allegedly tried to impede the IRS’ collection efforts by transferring assets to his wife, submitting false information to the IRS about his assets, filing false tax returns and making false statements to IRS investigators. He also allegedly filed documents with a local court falsely claiming that Notices of Federal Tax Lien filed against him by the IRS him had been terminated.
If convicted, Edwards faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the tax evasion charge and three years in prison for the obstruction charge and each charge of filing a false tax return. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona for the Northern District of Alabama made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorney Isaiah Boyd of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted Canter for the Northern District of Alabama are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.