BENJAMIN SOLEIMANI AND SHARYN SOLEIMANI, Petitioners
v.
COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
United States Tax Court Filed May 15, 2023
The petitioners claimed they had owned Iranian property which was confiscated by the Iranian government, claiming a $2,725,000 long-term capital loss deduction, which they later increased to $5,579,708 on an amended return which they claimed entitled them to a refund. The respondent hired an expert who researched the Iranian property records. The expert found that the Iranian properties had never been owned by the petitioners or the Iranian government. In addition, documents provided by petitioners’ “expert” to the Court to were found to be forgeries. The “expert” who provided the false documents claimed to be a lawyer, but could not be found by his name, address, phone number or bar number in any official records.
Read the Case