Tax-Evasion Charges Baseless, Says Ministry Leader
by Jim Brown
July 21, 2006
(AgapePress) - - A Florida evangelist recently arrested on tax-evasion charges claims he's been targeted by the Internal Revenue Service because he's a creationist.Last week a grand jury indicted Dr. Kent Hovind on 58 federal charges, including falsifying bankruptcy documents, filing a false and frivolous lawsuit and complaints against the IRS, destroying records, and threatening to harm IRS investigators. Twelve of the charges are for failing to pay employee-related taxes.
The grand jury alleges Hovind failed to pay nearly half-a-million dollars in federal income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes on his employees at his Creation Science Evangelism ministry in Pensacola. Hovind, who is known as "Dr. Dino," says even though the 30 people who work for him are paid in cash, he is not a tax protestor and is not violating any laws.
"Nobody's an employee, and they all know that when they come. They come, they work," Hovind offers as an explanation. "The laborer is worthy of his hire -- we try to take the purely scriptural approach. We do the best we can with helping people with their family needs. There are no employees here."
Hovind claims his ministry does not have to "render unto Caesar" because it is not working for the government. "The bottom line is, our ministry has been in operation for 17 years," he says. "We don't have any employees, none."
The ministry leader continues his explanation, saying he does not "own anything in the world" but has "dedicated everything to the Lord's work."
"I've taken a vow of poverty, which any minister can do," Hovind says. "And everything I have here, everything I've ever earned in my life, has gone straight into God's work. So we're not breaking any laws. We haven't done anything wrong."
Two years ago IRS agents raided Hovind's home and Dinosaur Adventure Land to confiscate records. In the current situation, Hovind accuses federal agents of "grand jury shopping," noting three previous grand juries filed to indict him. The case goes to trial September 5.
Jim Brown, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
