Hedge Fund Manager Indicted on Tax Fraud Charges

Feb 24, 2026 · Sourced to the U.S. Department of Justice

The charges described here are allegations. The defendant(s) are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. This page reflects only what the Department of Justice has publicly announced, and links to the original release.

An indictment was unsealed today in the Western District of Texas charging a Cayman national who renounced his U.S. citizenship with tax evasion, filing false returns and willfully failing to file tax forms disclosing foreign assets.

District

Western Texas

Announced

Feb 24, 2026

Status

Charged

Defendants

Justin Ryan Schmidt — Austin, Texas · indicted

Charges

Tax evasion
Max: five years in prisonJustin Ryan Schmidt· indicted
Filing false tax returns
Max: three years in prison for each countJustin Ryan Schmidt· indicted
Willfully failing to file forms disclosing foreign bank accounts
Max: five years in prison for each countJustin Ryan Schmidt· indicted

Investigating agencies

IRS Criminal Investigation

Case details

Prosecuting office: Western District of Texas

CryptocurrencyExpatriation And Renouncing U.S. CitizenshipFailure To Disclose Foreign AssetsFiling False Tax ReturnsReal Estate TransactionsTax Evasion

Primary source

Every fact above is drawn from the Department of Justice's own announcement — a public-domain government record.

Read the original DOJ release →

This is a research and reference page compiled from public DOJ announcements, not legal advice. Details reflect the government's statements as of its release date and may not capture later developments such as appeals, dismissals, or overturned convictions. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.