Salem police captain arrested for federal tax evasion in gun resale scheme
A Salem police captain who has been on administrative leave for more than a year while under criminal investigation was arrested Thursday and charged with one count of filing a false tax return.
Michael Wagner, 48, of Pelham was charged on an indictment unsealed Thursday that alleges he purchased 36 assault rifles using his law enforcement discount at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, resold them at a profit of $33,000, and purposely omitted them from his tax return, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston.
Investigators say Wagner bought the firearms between December 2012 and January 2013, and sold them in 2013. They say he filed his tax return in February 2013, claiming a total income of $166,170.
The indictment also alleges Wagner falsely claimed $10,790 in deductions in the form of non-reimbursed expenses for police equipment, ammunition and firearms in the same tax return.
Read more: https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/salem-police-captain-arrested-for-federal-tax-evasion-in-gun-resale-scheme/article_1393c949-fca7-584b-882f-65d0873d3e83.html