United States v. Roger Rebbe

Defendant-Appellant Roger Rebbe appeals his conviction for one count of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States and eleven counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, on the ground that the district court erred in admitting proffer statements he made to the Government during a plea negotiation. Rebbe’s proffer statements were used by the Government to rebut evidence and arguments he presented at trial that were inconsistent with his proffer statements. We affirm.

BACKGROUND

Rebbe, an accountant, assisted the Sherman Oaks Tree Service (“SOTS”) and George Buskett, its chief executive officer, in evading workers’ compensation insurance payments and federal payroll taxes. Rebbe was responsible for preparing all of SOTS’ annual tax returns between 1994 and 1998. Rebbe advised Buskett to open two bank accounts, the “Green Account” and the “Blue Account.” SOTS’ income was deposited into the Blue Account. A portion of SOTS’s income, however, was regularly withdrawn from the Blue Account and transferred to the Green Account. SOTS’ annual tax returns only reported the payroll figures from the Green Account to the Internal Revenue Service (the…