Although Robert Brockman’s counsel claimed he had dementia and was unable to stand trial, a trial date was scheduled for February 2023. He entered a not-guilty plea.
How Did Robert Brockman Die?
According to sources, a wealthy software developer who was involved in the largest individual tax evasion case in US history passed away on Friday at his home in Houston.
Robert Brockman, a billionaire who was charged with tax evasion in 2020 in what has been considered the biggest case ever brought against an individual in the United States, has passed away. He was 81.
Brockman’s lead attorney, Kathy Keneally, announced his passing on Saturday. The cause of death and more information were not immediately available.
His lawyers had been contending in court that he was incapable of testifying because of dementia. However, a court in May found him competent and scheduled his trial for February 2023.
Robert Brockman Biography
Robert Brockman, 81, a self-taught software entrepreneur who created a system that assisted auto dealers in managing their businesses remotely, had been defending himself against more than $2 billion in IRS claims of money laundering and tax fraud since 2020.
According to the prosecution, Brockman, who had a personal net worth of $4.7 billion, owned a 209-foot boat called “Turmoil,” a Bormbardier jet, a Colorado ski chalet worth $8 million, and a $8 million residence in Houston.
Robert Brockman past sickness history
A court decided in May that the trial would proceed despite Brockman’s dementia and his attorneys’ repeated claims that he wasn’t able to stand trial. At a hearing in June, the court set the trial date for February 2023. Brockman attended the hearing from his bed through a video link.
In addition to registering numerous patents, Brockman formed Reynolds & Reynolds, a software firm with more than 5,000 workers and a value of more than $5 billion, according to Bloomberg. Brockman was born in Florida, where his mother practised physiotherapy and his father owned a gas station.
Robert Brockman – $2 billion tax evasion case full report
Brockman, a native of Florida and current resident of Houston with a fortune pegged by Forbes at $4.7 billion, served as the previous CEO of Reynolds & Reynolds, an Ohio-based software provider for enterprises.
He was accused by the government of dodging taxes on $2 billion in earnings, wire fraud, money laundering, and other charges in a 39-count indictment filed in October 2020. He entered a not-guilty plea.
The Department of Justice stated in its announcement of the indictment that the alleged plot to hide the billions in income from the IRS spanned decades.
The $2 billion tax fraud accusation, according to David L. Anderson, US attorney for the Northern District of California, is the highest tax charge ever brought against a person in the US.
From 2012 to 2014, Keneally, his primary attorney and a seasoned tax expert, served as the assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department’s tax division.
In accordance with court documents, Brockman’s former business partner and the richest Black American, Robert Smith, was going to be a major witness against him. Records reveal that Smith avoided charges by acknowledging tax evasion, paying $139 million in taxes and penalties, and promising to cooperate.
The accusation that Brockman avoided taxes by surreptitiously controlling an offshore charitable trust—which he claimed was independent—was at the centre of the criminal case against him.
Is Robert Brockman death affect the government’s ability to recover the taxes?
He allegedly used illegal proceeds to purchase a 200-foot boat, a private plane, and a fishing resort in Colorado, among other things. The Aspen Times stated that the government submitted paperwork in 2021 to take the 100-acre fishing refuge in the Rockies.
It was unclear right away how Brockman’s passing would impact the government’s capacity to collect the taxes it contends are owed.
Also read: Prosecutor Karl Muscat death: Toxicology tests report and cause of death explained
According to Bloomberg, he is left by his wife of 53 years, Dorothy; son Robert Brockman II; a sibling; and two grandchildren.
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