IRS celeb snooper avoids prison
The improper accessing of financial information of celebrities has landed an IRS employee in hot water
An Internal Revenue Service employee has been found guilty of improperly
accessing the financial information of 200 celebrities.
John Snyder was sentenced to three years’ probation, 60 hours of community
service and fined $1,000 (£535).
Snyder accessed information on IRS computers about celebrities including Alec
Baldwin, Kevin Bacon, Chevy Chase and Sally Field for a five-year period.
According to J. Russell George, the US taxman’s treasury inspector general
for investigations, the unauthorised access of taxpayer information by IRS
employees violates not only the law, but also the public trust.