American Tax Officer

So for a moment, he didn't know how to rebut.

But just then, another member of the Human Rights Organization spoke up, "Ted, Lawyer Jeff, there's no need to continue quibbling over this, we still have us!"

His words brought Ted and Jeff, who were still feeling aggrieved, back to their senses.

Right.

Even if the IRS convicts Ted with this argument, let's not forget, there are still two other members of the Human Rights Organization.

And if they can't convict these two members, the IRS will still face a public outcry and the Human Rights Organization's difficulties afterward.

It's just a matter of sacrificing oneself for justice!

As long as they could bring down the IRS and David, it would all be worth it!

And when the time comes, as the one who sacrificed everything, he would undoubtedly be the most watched person!

With this in mind, Ted decisively looked up at Nicola on the stage, "Okay, Your Honor, since you accuse me of this crime, let's just say I won't argue."

Nicola nodded with satisfaction, her eyes filled with expectation as she looked towards David.

David didn't dally, and opened the next envelope.

Quickly, everyone saw a stack of paper cards!

Seeing them, everyone present was confounded.

They had thought David might take out a USB drive or videotape and, again accusing the second Human Rights Organization member of tax evasion on the grounds of undeclared tips.

But who would have thought it would be a stack of paper cards? What use could they be?

As the others continued to ponder, no one noticed the supermarket clerk named Evan Phyllis in the defendant's seat was showing a hint of unease.

Right, he recognized these cards, they were the discount coupons issued by his supermarket. Surely they weren't going to accuse him of tax evasion with these coupons, were they?

David smiled slightly and lifted the cards, "What do you think, Evan? Do you find these coupons familiar?"

"These are our supermarket's discount coupons. Is there a problem?"

"Of course, there is a problem!"

David spread out the cards one by one and added, "On December 5th, you used these coupons to shop at the supermarket, saving 80 Meimei dollars, on December 9th, you shopped with these coupons again, saving another 40 US dollars, and on December 13th... In one month, you've saved a total of 600 US dollars with these coupons..."

"Wait a minute..."

Evan couldn't stand to listen anymore and interrupted, "These are coupons issued by the supermarket. What's wrong with using them to save some money? Which tax law of your IRS did I violate?"

"You're actually right, you did indeed violate our IRS's tax laws!"

David said slowly, "Because the supermarket goods have a unified market price, and by saving 600 US dollars with these coupons, you've effectively profited 600 US dollars. According to our IRS's tax laws, you should have paid 60 US dollars in taxes for this profit, but it seems you neither reported nor paid tax on this income, so tell me, do you think this counts as tax evasion?"

At that, Evan was dumbfounded.

He was clearly saving money using coupons, so how could it turn into profiting in David's words?

This was outrageous; no one had ever heard of the IRS going after discount coupons before—it was absurdity ushering in madness, madness to the extreme!

Actually, it wasn't just Evan.

The celebrities present at the scene and the IRS higher-ups watching the live stream were also stunned.

But unlike the celebrities, the people in the IRS system were only stunned for a moment before they started getting agitated.

At first listen, David's statement indeed sounded shocking. How could using a coupon possibly turn into an accusation of tax evasion?

But, in fact, according to the IRS's tax laws, especially after the enactment of the "Dark Tax Act," it really fits.

Because the provisions of the Dark Tax Act explicitly stipulate that any illegal income, any profit, must be taxed by the IRS.

Note that it's "any"!

And these discount coupons clearly counted as a profit, so if the IRS insisted on this point, the charge of tax evasion could be substantiated.

"Okay, if Director David, you insist that using a coupon equates to tax evasion, let it be tax evasion then. But the key point is, these coupons were issued by the supermarket. So could I argue that the supermarket is inducing my clients to commit tax evasion? My clients are also victims here!"

Since they couldn't refute the cap David was trying to fit them with, they decided to shift the blame onto the supermarket. Admittedly, Jeff's rebuttal was quite solid.

But how could David let them succeed? He replied with a faint smile, "As I've said before, you're from the Human Rights Organization, you should understand the law better than the average citizen. The supermarket gave you the coupons out of goodwill, but they didn't remind you of your duty to pay taxes.

It's like the case with Ted before—you get a tip from a customer, is the customer supposed to remind you to pay taxes on it?"

"So everything relies on your conscientiousness!"

By putting the Human Rights Organization in a position of greater legal understanding than ordinary people, David left Jeff speechless for the moment.

Ordinary citizens might get away with ignorance of the law and claim innocence.

But how could members of the Human Rights Organization not understand the law?

How could they qualify to join the organization or fight for the legitimate rights of the people? That would be a joke!