Man Seeking to Disqualify Trump from 2024 Ballot in At Least 27 States Arrested for Filing 17 False Tax Documents to IRS — Risks 99 Years in Prison on 33 Felony Counts
John Anthony Castro, a Texas man known for his legal efforts to challenge former President Donald Trump’s eligibility for the 2024 presidential ballot, has been arrested on charges related to filing false tax documents.
Castro, who filed challenges in 27 states against Trump’s ballot placement, was indicted last week on 33 counts of aiding the preparation of false tax returns.
Castro operated a virtual tax preparation business that deceitfully inflated tax refunds for clients, The Hill reported.
Castro was the proprietor of Castro & Company LLC, a digital tax preparation firm with establishments in Orlando, Mansfield, and Washington, D.C., per WFAA.
According to court documents, Castro promised significantly higher refunds than other tax preparers and often proposed to split the extra refund with taxpayers. To achieve these larger refunds, he reportedly created false deductions and submitted them without the taxpayers’ knowledge.
Evidence of Castro’s fraudulent activities surfaced when an undercover officer in 2018, who had previously been quoted a $373 refund by a reputable tax preparer, was promised a $6,007 refund by Castro. The tax forms filed by Castro contained nearly $30,000 in fraudulently claimed deductions.
Outside his tax business, Castro, a GOP presidential candidate himself albeit a long-shot. He was born on the U.S. military base in Landstuhl, Germany and lives in Texas.
According to Ballotpedia, he earned a J.D. from the University of New Mexico School of Law, and an LL.M. from the Georgetown University Law Center. Castro’s career experience includes working as an attorney and entrepreneur.
According to the New York Times, Castro has never been licensed to practice law in any state.
John Anthony Castro hates Trump supporters. He hates Trump and his supporters with a red-hot passion.