ST CROIX, USVI — US Virgin Islands Attorney General Vincent Frazer and Director Claudette Watson Anderson, of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, on Wednesday announced the arrest of Jonathan Cohen, sole owner of JKC Communications (parent company of Isle 95, Sunny 99.5 FM, Mongoose 104.9FM, AM 970-WSTX & WSTX FM-100 radio stations), Clara Communications and Radio 95, for failure to file and pay corporate and individual income taxes for several years.
Cohen owns and operates the largest radio station on the island of St Croix.
The arrest is one of many more to come from the Virgin Islands Department of Justice and the Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue as a result of work that is being done by the Tax Collection Task Force, which is jointly headed by Frazer and Watson Anderson.
“There are many individuals who continue to cheat the Virgin Islands government by failing to file and/or pay taxes and the task force is putting together the pieces of the puzzle needed to bring these individuals to justice,” Frazer said.
The US Internal Revenue Service assisted the VIBIR in the investigation of this case and will continue to assist the USVI government in the upcoming cases.
Cohen is charged with failure to file taxes for a seven year period from 2004 through 2010. The government alleges that Cohen and his corporations had collective gross income in excess of $10 million during the period of time alleged in the complaint and failed to pay taxes owed to the government of the US Virgin Islands. Cohen also failed to file gross receipts tax returns for the same period owed in gross receipt taxes to the VIBIR.
“For far too long, too many have been getting away with not filing or paying their fair share of taxes and through the work of the task force it is our goal to bring these individuals to justice and collect any outstanding payments owed,” Frazer said, adding, the arrest of Jonathan Cohen for his failure to file and pay taxes is just the beginning fruits of their labour in this combined effort.
