[Bob Tanner]

IRS charges Castroneves with failing to pay taxes on over $5M in income | www.azstarnet.com ®

Welcome to the USA, Helio.

The lesson to be learned here is that using the completely incomprehensible US Tax Code to gain an advantage is one thing. To move money around to hide income is a completely different story. Trust me, the Gestapo (Oops. I really mean IRS) is one government agency you DO NOT mess with. In fact, it's best if they don't even know you exist.

Good luck. I hope you and your sister, Kati, come out of this as well as Wesley Snipes did. I can't say the same for your lawyer; he knew better.

[Racer Duck]

hmmm .. Dancing with the Stars will not be the same.

[onearmsteve]

uh ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

[Quality88]

Can everyone say dumba$$... I knew you could

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by Quality88

Can everyone say dumba$$... I knew you could

This is nothing to mess with. Tax evasion charges involve a Federal indictment for charges to be brought. They've pulled his passport, which means until this is ironed out he won't be traveling to foreign countries to race for Penske. (They have... three races out of the country?)

They got Gene Haas on essentially the same charges, except from what I've read, Helio and his sister went to greater lengths to hide income. Gene's been in Club Fed since spring and will get out sometime next season.

Now, somewhere there is a legal bureaucratic Federal prosecuting attorney thinking sending a high-profile ship like the HMS Castroneves to the bottom will go a long way to gaining a partnership in some hi-rolling law firm out there in TV Land.

Helio can't even take the Wesley Snipes defense ("I was told I didn't legally have to pay taxes by my lawyer.") from what I read. In fact his lawyer is trying to sell him out already, because they've indited him along with Helio and his sister.

I read somewhere some good advice for our dancing buddy: "Don't try climbing fences at the pen like you do at the tracks. It draws fire."