Jury convicts former Bellevue developer of tax evasion
Dec 12, 2014, 10:54 AM | Updated: 11:11 am
A federal jury in Seattle has convicted a former Bellevue developer and lender, who used secret accounts to hide millions of dollars of income from tax collectors.
At first, investigators said Thomas Hazelrigg III agreed to pay $533,454 in unpaid taxes for 1989 through 1991. But, he failed to pay the debt and lived a lavish lifestyle, they claimed.
For ten years, starting in 1997, a jury was told that Hazelrigg, 68 diverted income from his businesses into the secret accounts. During that time, he bought a Bellevue penthouse, Chihuly glass chandeliers, and two luxury homes in Palm Springs. He spent millions of dollars on gambling, thoroughbred horse racing, private aircraft, and country club fees, according to prosecutors.
“This trial laid bare Mr. Hazelrigg’s wide-ranging deceit and manipulation all in the service of greed,” said Acting United States Attorney Annette L. Hayes in a news release.
After a 9-day trial, the jury on Thursday convicted Hazelrigg on two counts of tax evasion that carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison for each charge.
Sentencing is March 12, 2015.
