A Chevy Chase attorney is charged with failing to report millions of dollars he won playing poker among other charges.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland issued a 22-count indictment Thursday against Thomas C. Goldstein, who resides in both Chevy Chase and Washington, D.C. He is charged with tax evasion, assisting in the preparation of false tax returns and making false statements to two mortgage lenders.
According to the indictment, between 2016 and 2023, Goldstein was the sole owner of Goldstein & Russell, P.C., a boutique law firm specializing in appellate litigation, including litigation before the United States Supreme Court. Goldstein was allegedly also a high-stakes poker player, frequently playing in games involving millions of dollars.
Goldstein is charged with involvement in a scheme to evade his taxes. He allegedly diverted legal fees due to the law firm to his personal bank account and then used them to pay personal poker-related debts; used the law firm’s assets to satisfy his personal poker debts and falsely classified those payments as “legal-fee” expenses on the firm’s books and records; and used firm assets to pay salaries and health insurance premiums for people with whom Goldstein had a personal relationship but who performed little or no work for the law firm and did not qualify for its health insurance, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Goldstein also allegedly did not report, or falsely understated, millions of dollars of gambling winnings on his tax returns. In addition, for 2016 through 2021, except 2018, Goldstein allegedly did not pay the taxes he self-reported were due on his returns, while simultaneously spending millions of dollars on personal expenses such as gambling debts, travel, vacation rentals and luxury goods, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
In 2021, Goldstein allegedly submitted false mortgage applications to two separate mortgage lending companies, seeking financing to purchase a $2.6-million home in Washington, D.C. On those mortgage applications — which required Goldstein to list all his liabilities and debts — Goldstein allegedly omitted millions of dollars of liabilities, including more than $14 million he owed at the time on two promissory notes, as well as taxes he owed to the IRS.
Goldstein’s false statements to one of the mortgage lenders allegedly enabled him to obtain a $1.98 million loan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for each of the tax evasion charges; three years for each count of assisting in the preparation of false tax returns; a maximum of one year on each of the five counts charging willful failure to pay taxes; and 30 years for each count of making false statements to mortgage lenders. He also faces a period of supervised release, monetary penalties, and restitution.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating the case.
Maryland Attorney Charged With Tax Crimes
and Making False Statements to Mortgage Lendershttps://t.co/vJf3invFTw
Announced with @DOJTaxDiv pic.twitter.com/kV2rVyl4H7— US Attorney Maryland (@USAO_MD) January 16, 2025
