SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO AM) - A Letcher father and son were sentenced Monday to prison and ordered to pay close to $2 million for failure to file income taxes.
District Judge Karen Schrier sentenced 68-year-old Theodore J. Nelson to just under six years and 46-year-old Steven A. Nelson to a year in prison.
The Nelsons inherited a family farm and business from "Ted" Nelson's parents in rural Letcher. Father and son raised and sold crops and cattle, ran hunting businesses, leased property and sold property.
The Internal Revenue Service placed a lien on Nelson's real estate and the two men created trusts, corporations, LLC's and other entities to hide their ownership of the farm and its income.
They also opened bank accounts using false tax identification and Social Security numbers. Steve Nelson filed tax returns through 1996 and Ted filed through 1998, and both stopped filing.
Steve is ordered to surrender to U.S. Marshals on April 18. Ted was remanded to the custody of the Marshals Service.
Letcher is northwest of Mitchell in Sanborn County.