Henderson cosmetic dentist pleads guilty in tax evasion scheme

A veteran Henderson cosmetic dentist has pleaded guilty in a $437,456 tax evasion scheme.

As part of the scheme, Leslie M. Kotler hid his salary in a phony trust for several years and filed a bankruptcy petition that provided false information about his assets, according to court documents.

Kotler, 54, who is free on his own recognizance, is to be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon on Nov. 13.

He pleaded guilty Thursday to one felony count of tax evasion involving the $437,456 he owed the Internal Revenue Service from 2003 through 2007.

Kotler has agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors and IRS agents in a broader illegal tax shelter investigation.

His name surfaced in a civil complaint the Justice Department filed against three defendants involved in a nationwide tax scheme built around a series of sham trusts.

One of the defendants, James Stoll, operated Systems Corporation of America out of Las Vegas and was regarded as an expert in setting up trusts and corporations, the complaint said. Stoll is alleged to have worked closely with Nevada accountant Wayne Reeves, who the complaint said showed clients how to thwart IRS tax collection activities and hide assets in phony trusts.

The complaint alleged that Reeves advised Kotler to put payments from his dental services into a Stoll-created sham trust known as Aesthetic Resources. Kotler’s sister, who lives in California, was alleged to have assisted in the scheme.

“Over the years, Dr. Kotler has paid tens of thousands of dollars to Reeves for his bogus tax advice and to Stoll for his entity formation and registered agent services,” the complaint said.

According to Kotler’s plea agreement, which was filed under seal last week, he unlawfully funneled money from his dental practice through the Aesthetic Resources trust between 2008 and 2011 to thwart attempts by the IRS to collect the taxes.

On April 17, 2012, Kotler filed a Chapter 13 reorganization petition in Bankruptcy Court that understated his assets by at least $399,950 to further avoid paying his tax bill, the plea agreement says.

At the request of a bankruptcy trustee, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mike Nakagawa dismissed the Chapter 13 petition on June 4, 2012, because Kotler failed to file a statement of his financial affairs and a plan to reorganize his debts, court records show.

“The filing of this petition caused the IRS to delay its collection efforts against the defendant,” Kotler’s plea agreement says.

Kotler also filed amended tax returns in June 2012 that underestimated his income for the tax years 2008, 2010 and 2011 by roughly $350,000, the agreement says.

He has agreed to pay the IRS $608,633 in restitution, which includes taxes owed through 2011, and more than $100,000 in civil penalties.

Kotler’s cooperation agreement calls for him to “provide complete and truthful information and testimony” about other people involved in the tax scheme.

His Southern California attorney Bernard Gartland could not be reached for comment Friday.

Records from the Nevada Dental Board of Examiners show that Kotler has not faced any disciplinary action since he obtained his license in 2003.

But John Hunt, the board’s general counsel said Friday the board would be taking steps to begin an investigation of Kotler in the wake of his guilty plea.

The criminal case was put together by IRS-Criminal Investigation in Las Vegas and prosecuted by Thomas Flynn, a trial attorney with the Justice Department’s Tax Division in Washington.

Contact Jeff German at jgerman@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-8135. Find him on Twitter: @JGermanRJ.