American tax officials

Chapter 78 The CIA Comes Knocking

Coffdale looked at the person in front of him and asked tremblingly, "Who...who are you?"

The man grinned maliciously and said slowly, "CIA Senior Agent, my name is Jerome!"

"CIA!!!"

Upon hearing those three words, Koverdale went limp.

Thinking back to the CIA's brutal waterboarding, he almost broke down, but suddenly he seemed to remember something and cried out as if grasping at a straw, "You can't arrest me! I've already paid taxes to the IRS! I'm a good taxpayer under their jurisdiction..."

Actually, he was just grasping at straws in his desperation.

David had promised him at the time that he would not disclose his information.

But if he gets caught himself, then he can't blame the IRS!

But at that moment, Coverdale couldn't think about any of that.

In his view, having been caught by the FBI and CIA, the only one who could save him was the IRS!

"IRS!"

Jerome was startled and turned to look at Brod beside him.

Broad explained in a deep voice, "On December 3rd, Congress passed a bill called the Black Tax Act, which stipulates that from now on, all income earned from any illegal activity must be taxed by the IRS..."

After hearing this explanation, Brod finally understood.

But then he seemed to remember something, his expression turning grim, and he said, "So that means the IRS found this guy before we did, and they know what he does!"

Jerome nodded, his expression equally grim.

They had been tracking Coverdale for over half a year, but they couldn't find any trace of him until he got carried away and broke into the Pentagon, finally catching him in the act.

Unexpectedly, just over a month after the tax reform bill was introduced, the IRS caught the guy first and forced him to pay taxes.

The CIA is known as the world's number one intelligence agency, so how the IRS managed to do that?

Gathering his thoughts, Jerome turned to Coverdale and asked, "I'm asking you, last month you hacked into our CIA system, took a list from our Bear Country site, and then handed it over to a spy, right? Who was he?"

"I...I don't know..."

"Snapped!"

No sooner had Coverdale finished speaking than Jerome slapped him across the face, leaving a red, swollen mark.

"Tell me the truth, or you'll regret it!"

Coffdale trembled, covering his face as he replied, "I really didn't know. That spy was very cautious; neither she nor I ever did any business together..."

"..."

After half an hour.

Jerome and Broad walked out of the apartment building and got into a black Cadillac.

"What he said must be true!"

Broad nodded in agreement and continued, "According to him, he assisted the IRS in uncovering that spy because of the tax deduction policy. He was indeed notified later that he could enjoy the tax deduction, which means that the spy was exposed by the IRS!"

"I never imagined that the IRS guys were so infiltrative. The person we spent so much time looking for, they dug him up without us even lifting a finger!"

Jerome's expression hardened; he was also quite displeased.

He had initially thought that the IRS's discovery of Coffdale was simply a matter of luck.

Unexpectedly, the IRS not only uncovered Coverdale, but also the spy they had been wanting to get rid of for a long time!

If this gets back to their superiors, wouldn't the two of them become complete useless?

After all, intelligence has always been the CIA's forte, but to be inferior to the IRS, which deals with taxation, is somewhat embarrassing.

Jerome grew increasingly resentful and said, "That spy is too cunning. Even if we continue the investigation, we might not be able to catch her in a short time. But her information is already in the hands of Inspector David. Perhaps we can have a talk with him!"

Broad paused, then shook his head, saying, "According to the confidentiality agreement of the Black Tax Act, the IRS has the right to keep taxpayers' information confidential, and we have no right to demand that they provide it!"

Jerome's face turned cold. He said, "That spy almost caused us to lose our entire Bear Country site and also caused enormous damage to other parts of our country. If the IRS had any sense of the bigger picture, they should abandon their damn rules and regulations and fully cooperate with us!"

This left Broad speechless.

That's true.

But first of all, the IRS is only responsible for collecting taxes. As long as taxes are paid to them, espionage or crimes are none of their business!

Moreover, by providing them with information about that spy, wouldn't the IRS lose a huge amount of tax revenue in the long run?

No wonder they wouldn't agree!

Before he could think any further, Jerome had already started the car.

Brod asked hastily, "Where are you going?"

Jerome replied as he shifted gears, "To Las Vegas, let's have a chat with that Inspector David!"

Upon hearing this, Brod touched his lips repeatedly, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to say anything to stop him.

Because he knew his partner's personality.

Oh well, I'll just go and try my luck!

……

Carson City and Las Vegas are both in Nevada, and the two places are not too far apart. It takes about an hour to drive between them. Jerome's car stopped in front of the IRS Lake District branch.

After getting out of the car and going inside, he found Debbie in the reception hall and asked, "Excuse me, is Inspector David in the station?"

Debbie paused for a moment, then immediately corrected her, "David isn't an inspector anymore; he's now our bureau's tax chief!"

"Chief Tax Officer!"

Both Jerome and Broad were somewhat surprised to hear this.

As far as they knew, promotions within the IRS were very difficult, even more so than within the CIA!

From Coffdale, they learned a lot about David and that the inspector was very young, only in his early twenties.

To be promoted to tax chief in one's early twenties, one's qualifications alone are not enough!

unless……

This inspector, David, was so capable after the tax evasion law was introduced that he was promoted in such an exceptional way!

But then again, if David wasn't capable, how could he have gotten to Coverdale and that spy before the CIA did?

Thinking about this, the two of them felt relieved.

Jerome then pulled out his badge and replied, "We're from the CIA. Please tell Tax Commissioner David we'd like to speak with him!"

"From the CIA!"

Debbie was also taken aback, but quickly recovered and picked up the phone on the counter.

(End of this chapter)