Igor Olenicoff, founder and president of Newport Beach-based real estate company Olen Properties Corp., was spared prison time in the conclusion of the billionaire’s long-running tax dispute with the government.
In federal court in Santa Ana on Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Cormac Carney sentenced Olenicoff to two years probation and 120 hours of community service as part of an earlier plea agreement.
The government late last year had charged Olenicoff with one felony count of willful filing of a false 2002 individual tax return, regarding his ownership of overseas assets and bank accounts.
Olenicoff, who is estimated to have a net worth of about $1.7 billion, pled guilty to the charges in December.
At the time, he agreed to settle IRS claims for about $50 million in back taxes and penalties.
The sentencing took place a day before the annual April 15 tax deadline, a common government tactic for high-profile cases.
Olenicoff could have faced a maximum prison term of six months under terms of the agreement, though jail time was always seen as unlikely.
The deal with the government resolves a lengthy dispute between Olenicoff and tax authorities.
Russian-born Olenicoff has claimed in the past that overseas entities, some with ties to former Russian president Boris Yeltsin, were behind much of Olen’s operations, with his own fortunes well below IRS estimates.
Olen owns some 6 million square feet of commercial properties across the country, along with more than 10,000 apartments.
