Charlotte businessman and founder of charitable organization indicted for tax fraud

Date: Jan. 29, 2026

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

Charlotte, NC – The U.S. Attorney’s Office unsealed an indictment today, charging a Charlotte man with tax fraud for filing fraudulent income tax returns and failure to file income tax returns on money he transferred from a charitable organization he founded and controlled, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Michael Kahn is charged with two counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, and two counts of failure to file a tax return. He appeared in court this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Omar J. Alboulhosn.

Donald “Trey” Eakins, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Charlotte Field Office (IRS-CI), joins U.S. Attorney Ferguson in making the announcement.

According to the indictment, the defendant established The Michael A. Kahn Family Foundation (The Foundation) in 2010 as a tax-exempt organization purportedly dedicated to advancing charitable, religious, and educational purposes. Kahn held all leadership roles within The Foundation, including Director, President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Chairman of the Board of Directors, and The Foundation had no other officers, board members, or employees. The indictment alleges that, between 2020 and 2023, Kahn transferred over $4.5 million from The Foundation to himself and failed to report those funds as income on his 2020 and 2021 tax returns filed with the IRS. The indictment also alleges that Kahn failed to file tax returns for calendar years 2022 and 2023, despite receiving income in excess of $25,900 and $27,700, respectively.

Following the court hearing, Kahn was released on bond. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, and up to one year in prison for each count of failure to file a tax return. A federal district court judge will determine the ultimate sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The IRS-CI handled the investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Caryn Finley of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte is in charge of the prosecution.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.