MicroStrategy Inc.
MSTR,
-3.16%
shares fell Wednesday after Washington, D.C.’s attorney general said it was suing the company and its former chief executive, Michael Saylor, for alleged tax fraud. MicroStrategy shares fell as much as 6% to an intraday low of $226. In a tweet, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine said it was suing Saylor and the company for conspiring to help Saylor avoid taxes. According to the civil complaint, filed in D.C. Superior Court, Saylor “unlawfully deprived the District of Columbia of tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue” because he “knowingly avoided income taxes he owed to the District by fraudulently claiming to be a resident of other, lower-tax jurisdictions while maintaining his domicile and place of abode in the District.” The complaint also alleges that “MicroStrategy knew that Saylor was in fact a District resident, but instead of accurately reporting his address to local and federal tax authorities and correctly 3 withholding District taxes, the company conspired with Defendant Saylor to facilitate his tax avoidance scheme.” Saylor stepped down as CEO of MicroStrategy, known for its big bet on bitcoin
BTCUSD,
+1.09%,
earlier this month but retained his chairman position. MicroStrategy has yet to respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment.