US Drops Tax Case Against Roger Ver Following $50M Deal
Crypto icon avoids prison as government moves to end years-long battle over Bitcoin taxes
The United States is moving to drop its high-profile tax evasion case against Bitcoin advocate Roger Ver, widely known as “Bitcoin Jesus,” after reaching a massive $49.9 million settlement with the government.
In a filing on Tuesday, prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California submitted a motion to dismiss Ver’s indictment without prejudice, signaling the likely end of his criminal case. The deal requires Ver to pay nearly $50 million in taxes, penalties, and interest to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for unpaid liabilities tied to his Bitcoin holdings.
The agreement follows a deferred prosecution deal struck in September, which allowed Ver to avoid trial if he met certain conditions. Ver admitted to failing to report capital gains on roughly 131,000 Bitcoin he owned when he renounced his U.S. citizenship in 2014 to become a citizen of St. Kitts and Nevis. At the time, those holdings were valued at around $74 million.
Court documents state that Ver’s false tax filings in 2016 caused losses exceeding $16 million to the U.S. government. The Justice Department had accused him of deliberately hiding his crypto assets to evade taxes after giving up his citizenship.
While the motion to dismiss still awaits a judge’s approval, legal experts say it effectively closes one of the most publicized tax cases in crypto history. Meanwhile, prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi show traders speculating on whether former President Donald Trump might still grant Ver a pardon, with odds hovering around 17% to 19%.
Ver has publicly denied wrongdoing, calling the case “lawfare” and appealing directly to Trump earlier this year for clemency.
