The owner of the Beach Bar has been sentenced to 20 months in jail for willfully filing false tax returns and structuring, a strategy to evade the government taking notice of large cash transactions. Allan MacPhee pleaded guilty to 20 such federal charges last fall, and has now been sentenced by the VI District Court. He was also ordered to pay $676,000 in fines forfeiture and restitution.
The government said he "omitted income he earned from his sole proprietorship, The Beach Bar ... MacPhee kept two sets of books for The Beach Bar” thereby cheating on his federal and VI taxes.
While MacPhee does his time, it’s possible he’ll be listening to some of his favorite CDs, which include tracks by Walter Hyatt and Willie Edwards. Abut four years ago, an Allan MacPhee on St. John created a profile on Amazon.com and passed along some recommendations of those artists.
Interestingly, in his review of the “King Tears” album, MacPhee writes ... “I saw Walter the night before the crash at my bar in Key West.” Hmmmm .... Crash, Key West? Do tell!
Now, no one can condone what MacPhee admitted he’s done. Running a bar can be a big cash machine and temptation is tempting. But don't overlook what MacPhee’s place has done for St. John and what his apparent love for music has done in providing a stage for many island musicians including the fantastic Steve Simon and the Jazz Islanders.
