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06-15-2011, 07:14 PM
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Rep. Charlie Rangel sells Dominican Republic villa at heart of tax non-payment scandal
By Alison Gendarstaff Writer (http://www.nydailynews.com/authors/Alison%20Gendarstaff%20Writer)
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Originally Published:Wednesday, June 15th 2011, 4:05 PM
Updated: Wednesday, June 15th 2011, 4:57 PM
http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2011/06/16/alg_charles_rangel.jpg Chip Somodevilla/Getty
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) faces questions from the news media after a House investigative committee found substatinial reason to believe Rangel has violated rules and laws last June.
WASHINGTON (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Washington%2c+DC) - Harlem (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Harlem) Rep. Charlie Rangel (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Charles+Rangel) has unloaded the vacation villa in the Dominican Republic (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Dominican+Republic) that nearly sank his political career.
Rangel made a killing on his Punta Cana (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Punta+Cana) beach property, paying some $89,000 decades ago for his dream retreat, but selling it for somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000 at the end of last year.
Rangel, who had headed the powerful House Ways and Means Committee (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/U.S.+House+Committee+on+Ways+and+Means) that writes the nation's tax laws, was censured by the House of Representatives (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/U.S.+House+of+Representatives) in December for ethics violations.
A chief violation included his failure to pay 17 years' worth of taxes on rental income from the Dominican Republic property.
Rangel had blamed sloppy bookkeeping, and his inability to speak Spanish, for the lapse.
He sold the villa less than four weeks after the censure. But still the financial numbers remain murky.
While his financial disclosure statements show the sale was for less than half a million, he claimed he made between $100,000 and $1 million in rent and capital gains on the same property for last calendar year.
Another $100,000 to $250,000 in profits was "in transit," according to Rangel's account. His spokeswoman could not immediately explain how funds from a December, 2010, sale were still "in transit" when Rangel filed the financial forms last month.
Despite the public censure - Congress' most severe reprimand short of kicking someone out - Rangel was easily re-elected to his 21st term in November.
Rep. Charlie Rangel sells Dominican Republic villa at heart of tax non-payment scandal
By Alison Gendarstaff Writer (http://www.nydailynews.com/authors/Alison%20Gendarstaff%20Writer)
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Originally Published:Wednesday, June 15th 2011, 4:05 PM
Updated: Wednesday, June 15th 2011, 4:57 PM
http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2011/06/16/alg_charles_rangel.jpg Chip Somodevilla/Getty
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) faces questions from the news media after a House investigative committee found substatinial reason to believe Rangel has violated rules and laws last June.
WASHINGTON (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Washington%2c+DC) - Harlem (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Harlem) Rep. Charlie Rangel (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Charles+Rangel) has unloaded the vacation villa in the Dominican Republic (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Dominican+Republic) that nearly sank his political career.
Rangel made a killing on his Punta Cana (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/Punta+Cana) beach property, paying some $89,000 decades ago for his dream retreat, but selling it for somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000 at the end of last year.
Rangel, who had headed the powerful House Ways and Means Committee (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/U.S.+House+Committee+on+Ways+and+Means) that writes the nation's tax laws, was censured by the House of Representatives (http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/U.S.+House+of+Representatives) in December for ethics violations.
A chief violation included his failure to pay 17 years' worth of taxes on rental income from the Dominican Republic property.
Rangel had blamed sloppy bookkeeping, and his inability to speak Spanish, for the lapse.
He sold the villa less than four weeks after the censure. But still the financial numbers remain murky.
While his financial disclosure statements show the sale was for less than half a million, he claimed he made between $100,000 and $1 million in rent and capital gains on the same property for last calendar year.
Another $100,000 to $250,000 in profits was "in transit," according to Rangel's account. His spokeswoman could not immediately explain how funds from a December, 2010, sale were still "in transit" when Rangel filed the financial forms last month.
Despite the public censure - Congress' most severe reprimand short of kicking someone out - Rangel was easily re-elected to his 21st term in November.