Florida Federal Criminal Defense Update: Helio Castroneves Not Guilty Of Tax Evasion
A Miami federal jury acquitted former Indy 500 champion Helio Castroneves, 33, of federal tax evasion charges after six days of intense jury deliberations. Throughout the trial, the 12-member Miami federal jury had the difficult task of unraveling a complex case involving multi-million dollar professional racing contracts, obscure federal tax laws, and offshore companies. In the end, the jurors found Castroneves and his sister Katiucia Castroneves not guilty six counts of tax evasion involving approximately $5.5 million in income and $2.3 million in unpaid federal income taxes.
Sitting next to each other and praying, Castroneves and his sister/manager kept their heads down as they listened to the federal jury's verdicts. Afterwards, the siblings sobbed and hugged each other along with their attorneys. During the trial, his attorneys portrayed the two-time Indy 500 winner as a gifted driver who relied on his father and others to handle the business side of his career.
However, Castroneves isn't totally in the clear. Although it acquitted Castroneves of six counts of tax evasion, the Miami federal jury deadlocked on the lead criminal conspiracy charge in the case, prompting U.S. District Court Judge Donald Graham to declare a mistrial on that count. At this time, it is unclear whether the prosecution will seek a retrial on the single deadlocked conspiracy charge. But it doing so may not make a lot of sense from a legal standpoint. As stated by an attorney for the the Castroneves defense, "If there's no tax evasion and the jury has made a finding there was no tax evasion, it's illogical to proceed on a charge of conspiracy to evade taxes."
The federal jury also acquitted Alan R. Miller, the racing star's sports attorney, on the lead conspiracy charge and three tax evasion counts. He was not charged in the three other counts of the indictment.
Following the acquittal, Castroneves emerged from Miami's downtown federal courthouse with red and swollen eyes, but smiling. He stated, "It's been a nightmare, and finally we wake up." He was scheduled to travel immediately from South Florida to Long Beach, California to compete in the Toyota Grand Prix for the legendary Penske racing team. Ironically, it was his multi-million dollar Penske racing contract that was at the core of the government's failed tax evasion case. The Penske racing team issued a brief statement saying that they were "excited" about having Castroneves back as a driver.
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