Federal Tax Agents

[caneaddict]

a good million people just relaxed after hearing 200

 

[clevelandcane81]

if this is to be true I can see Saban retiring soon. They need to investigate players getting new rides once they get on campus as well.

 

[orange&green84]

The IRS is not as toothless as the NCAA. Emmert is not in charge of the IRS.

This could actually lead to something.

There's a possibility that you may not hear anything in the news. But people need to stop trying to tie the NCAA and the federal government together, thinking they operate under the same umbrella.

The government first and foremost wants its money. Exchanging large sums of cash while the government doesn't get its share is a big no-no.

If this investigation does happen, the IRS isn't going to turn a blind eye. Not only are they going to hammer the parties involved hard, that penalty fee is going to hurt.

 

[orange&green84]

Who are the wrong people and who are the right people to get hurt in this? To my mind, anyone that has been taking illicit payments, not reporting the income, cheating the system, and talking about "I will always bleed Orange and Green, but I gotta take care of my family" is a problem. Even more so, anyone steering a kid to make decisions about their future based on what is best at the moment for some adult and not the best long-term interests of the individual student-athlete deserves to pay a price.

Institutionalized cheating and corruption does not have innocent participants, no matter the socioeconomic background they may come from. Obviously, it's easy to understand the temptation and the difficulty these kids come from, but the families and others around them need to stop being excused for considering their son or nephew or cousin or player as a winning lottery ticket.

What I hope for, is that South Florida's elite HS athletes will stop making the most important decisions of their lives based on a quick up front payment that really doesn't benefit them, rather than choosing a school for how it will develop and market their talents and for how it will prepare them for adulthood. Cleaning up the sleazy bag game and system of corrupt HS coaches and runners in SoFla, or even just exposing it to the light of day, can only help.

Even if that means that a few poor moms and dads who sold their child's future for a bag of cash have to pay a price.

I'm sorry, but I'm not crying for Benedict Arnold.

If you have to rely on your kids to get you out of the gutter, you as an adult failed. I couldn't imagine putting my kid through a situation where he had to put aside his dreams and future for the betterment of the family.

 

[westcoastcanes]

Who are the wrong people and who are the right people to get hurt in this? To my mind, anyone that has been taking illicit payments, not reporting the income, cheating the system, and talking about "I will always bleed Orange and Green, but I gotta take care of my family" is a problem. Even more so, anyone steering a kid to make decisions about their future based on what is best at the moment for some adult and not the best long-term interests of the individual student-athlete deserves to pay a price.

Institutionalized cheating and corruption does not have innocent participants, no matter the socioeconomic background they may come from. Obviously, it's easy to understand the temptation and the difficulty these kids come from, but the families and others around them need to stop being excused for considering their son or nephew or cousin or player as a winning lottery ticket.

What I hope for, is that South Florida's elite HS athletes will stop making the most important decisions of their lives based on a quick up front payment that really doesn't benefit them, rather than choosing a school for how it will develop and market their talents and for how it will prepare them for adulthood. Cleaning up the sleazy bag game and system of corrupt HS coaches and runners in SoFla, or even just exposing it to the light of day, can only help.

Even if that means that a few poor moms and dads who sold their child's future for a bag of cash have to pay a price.

I'm sorry, but I'm not crying for Benedict Arnold.

I fully agree in principal that if you are committing a crime, tax evasion being a serious one, you should pay the price. I am not suggesting anyone be ignored or get off without repercussion.

"wrong" really just referring to certain parties that will do nothing to address the problem if they are unable to go far enough up the chain. And the downside of getting these "wrong" people is the peripheral damage that can be caused. Not a reason not to go after a problem, or punish those guilty of a crime, just me hoping that it ends up being worth it all factors considered. I don't think it is unreasonable to assume that in some cases there will be family members and athletes that are either unwilling or unwitting participants, and I hope the damage to those is limited.

 

[g8rh8rMD]

I fully agree in principal that if you are committing a crime, tax evasion being a serious one, you should pay the price. I am not suggesting anyone be ignored or get off without repercussion.

"wrong" really just referring to certain parties that will do nothing to address the problem if they are unable to go far enough up the chain. And the downside of getting these "wrong" people is the peripheral damage that can be caused. Not a reason not to go after a problem, or punish those guilty of a crime, just me hoping that it ends up being worth it all factors considered. I don't think it is unreasonable to assume that in some cases there will be family members and athletes that are either unwilling or unwitting participants, and I hope the damage to those is limited.

Agreed, completely. Well put.

 

[Captain Uberpants]

All they really have to do is nail 1-2 bagmen and hammer them into poverty and Most of the others will cease operations immediately

 

[PCBcanefan]

 

[Canefam]

All cash, washed, rinsed and dry cleaned... nothing to see!

 

[HurricaneAce07]

If this is all true, they are not going to go after thousands of kids and their families. It would make more sense to go after the money guys. Lets face it, we already know that the "great recruiters" are really just the coaches at each school that coordinate the payments, and if we know, the Feds know.

I would be shocked if there is any real evidence of top college coaches/staffs explicitly suggesting boosters bribe a recruit or his family. As I've mentioned in previous threads, the "bags" have gotten much more sophisticated over the years - we're rarely talking about hard monetary exchanges these days; bags are now leased cars, non-profit jobs and sibling scholarship offers.

The Feds + IRS are going to have to prove either money laundering and/or tax evasion took place in order to go after the boosters. I just don't see how they can do that with the way the laws are currently written and the way the boosters are handling these transactions. The Alabama car situation is the most tangible example of these - unethical? Yes. Illegal per NCAA or federal laws? Not really.

 

[dk72]

If you have to rely on your kid's to get you out of the gutter, you as an adult failed. I couldn't imagine putting my kid through a situation where he had to put aside his dreams and future for the betterment of the family.

Exactly. The adult's job is to help raise up the kid for a better life, not the other way around.

 

[warpigs58]

Seems like everyone has sauces in the FBI!

 

[RVACane]

Connecting the bag mens’ acts to the schools, in a way to show knowledge/culpability, would seem to be the challenge in going after the institutions themselves.

 

[Drewny1]

I dont know how much of this is wishful thinking vs. reality, but I was told by a reputable source that the Feds are specifically targeting Bama, Georgia, Arkansas and Texas.

Pretty much the entire south and California is under investigation

 

[DTP]

It doesn't take special circumstances to get audited by the IRS. A lot of these large payments are way too big to be easily hidden or laundered. It's a simple matter of putting the screws to a couple families who weren't smart enough to cover their tracks. Tell us where you got the money and we'll drop these very serious federal charges.

 

[GhostRecon_Cane]

Hopefully the Feds are targeting the real key targets in this bag men industry. Much like when I was in Afghanistan, we stopped targeting the farmers that cultivated the poppy, we went after the narco terrorists and their refinery plants. Poor farmers had no choice in the matter of growing poppy and were just doing it to feed their families and not be murdered. Same should apply with the system of bags.

Funny u should say that. I’m there now. Helping special forces do the same.

 

[tsimonitis]

Feds always get their money

 

[tyrn]

It isn’t hard to identify the bag worthy recruits down here.

Put investigators on the “decision makers” (usually mom or dad) in the family.

Follow them around for a few weeks especially the few weeks leading up to NSD and you will find what you need.

 

[Stylie]

I worry this too.... some kid is going to lose eligibility and a chance at the NFL because he had the wrong adults around him. Some are also good kids, **** a guy in my hometown went to UF back in 07, he got a bag, what he do? Stopped by his best friends moms house (best friend was shot and killed) once a month to help her pay bills...

However I agree, some will have to take a fall and that will likely put other kids/parents on notice and be more weary that you can get caught and they may then refuse payments.

“If he dies, he dies.”

 

[Dy-lan]

Connecting the bag mens’ acts to the schools, in a way to show knowledge/culpability, would seem to be the challenge in going after the institutions themselves.

My thoughts exactly. But who knows, maybe some people inside of the schools are really that dumb. In basketball we saw it happen just this year.