Kirkland business owner gets 5 years for tax evasion

KIRKLAND, Wash. — A Kirkland businessman has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for a long-running tax-evasion scheme.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle says 58-year old Daniel Nix ran Dannix Design, an interior design firm for medical offices.

He was convicted after a four-day jury trial of failing to pay taxes on $3.9 million in income from 2000 to 2013.

Prosecutors said he set up sham religious entities to help evade taxes and in 2013 paid an Arizona man to send fake money orders to the IRS to make it look like he was paying his taxes.

Authorities say he owns a home assessed at more than $1 million and that he bought at least 16 luxury vehicles over the years, including a Porsche, a Jaguar and multiple Mercedes.

U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik sentenced him Friday and ordered him to pay nearly $852,000 in restitution.

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Associated Press