70-Year-Old West Hartford Gambler Sentenced For Filing False Tax Returns

A 70-year-old West Hartford gambler was sentenced and fined $100,000 this week after being convicted of filing false federal tax returns in a case involving huge gambling earnings and losses.

Michael P. Weinstein was sentenced to two years of probation, including six months of home confinement, by U.S. District Court Judge Janet C. Hall.

The U.S. Attorney’s office said that Weinstein had gambling winnings in 2009 of nearly $450,000 - a huge sum. But he also had losses that year totaling nearly $270,000, which gave him a net return of slightly less than $180,000.

Federal prosecutors charged that Weinstein under-reported his income for 2009 when he filed his federal income taxes in April 2010 – failing to pay more than $50,000 in federal taxes.

As part of the sentencing in New Haven, Weinstein forfeited more than $143,000 and was fined $100,000.

Weinstein continued gambling at a major pace in 2010, generating winnings of $475,800. But he also lost the same amount that year – $475,800, prosecutors said.

“On his 2010 tax return, Weinstein failed to report his gambling winnings or losses, which affected the Alternative Minimum Tax on his return, and which resulted in his not paying $1,405 in federal taxes,” the U.S. Attorney’s office said. “As part of the resolution of this case, Weinstein has paid more than $97,000 in back taxes, interest and penalties for the 2009 and 2010 tax years.  Weinstein also has forfeited $143,562.46, which the IRS seized in November 2011 from two of Weinstein’s bank accounts pursuant to a court-authorized seizure warrant.”