IRS duns Pacman $18.3 M in taxes

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao is facing tax woes left and right.

Already in trouble with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Pacquiao is now facing allegations he owes the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the United States $18.3 million in taxes.

TMZ Sports yesterday reported that Pacquiao “stiffed the government out of federal income taxes” from 2006 to 2010 amounting to $18,313,668.79 or roughly P805 million.

The popular US-based entertainment portal said it has obtained official documents on Pacquiao’s latest tax issue.

The breakdown is as follows: $1,160,324.30 for 2006, $2,035,992.50 for 2007, $2,862,437.11 for 2008, $8,022,915.87 for 2009, and $4,231,999.01 for 2010.

But Pacquiao’s chief adviser, Mike Koncz, called The STAR yesterday afternoon to say the numbers are not final and that everybody’s working on the matter.

“There is no final assessment yet on the exact amount from the IRS,” he said.

“We are not covering or hiding anything. This is ongoing. Everything is transparent,” said Koncz, who added that they are looking at huge tax deductions for Pacquiao for the period in question.

“It’s a very simple question. Will the tax appeals board (in the US) consider these deductions as business expenses or not? You see, American taxes are very different from Philippine taxes.

“It’s for the tax appeals board to decide. Again, there’s no final assessment at this point. We are very confident with our tax lawyers and our accountants,” Koncz added.

Pacquiao said everything is in order, and that every time he fights in the US, the IRS is always on his tail. He said his promoter Bob Arum has been paying his taxes assiduously.

“Bayad na ni Bob lahat ’yun. Kinakaltas ’yun. Diretso sa IRS ’yun. Sa bawa’t laro ko andun ang IRS, nakatutok sila. Inaabot ni Arum yung tax (Bob paid it all. It’s deducted, and goes straight to the IRS. Each time I fight, the IRS is there),” he told Filipino sports website Spin.ph yesterday.

Pacquiao, a second-term congressman from Sarangani, said these tax issues are the handiwork of people who are either jealous of him or are out to destroy his credibility as a public official.

He, however, remains unfazed, adding that he plans to push through with a family vacation in the US this month.

“Basta ako hindi ako natataranta dyan. Wala akong tinatago. Hindi naman ako nagnanakaw, wala naman akong tinatago (I’m not rattled by this. I’m not hiding anything. I’m not a thief and there’s nothing for me to hide),” he said.

Right after his impressive victory over Brandon Rios in Macau last Nov. 24, the BIR went after Pacquiao, saying the boxing icon owes the government P2.2 billion in taxes for 2008 and 2009.

Arum, chief of Top Rank Promotions, said 30 percent of all of the boxer’s earnings for his fights and endorsements in the US go to the IRS.

He even dared the BIR to send its agents to the Top Rank office in Las Vegas.

“Let them come to our office. Let them sit down and we will take them through every single wire transfer (to the IRS),” Arum said.

Arum said these tax issues against Pacquiao are “outrageous and it’s politics at its worst.” –With Zinnia dela Peña