Marc Harris

Marc Matthew Harris (born c. 1965) is an accountant who was formerly active in the field of offshore financial services. At one time he claimed that his firm, The Harris Organisation, had funds under management of $1 billion and $35 million in capital, but the organization collapsed after being exposed as fraudulent in OffshoreAlert in 1998. In 2004, Harris was convicted in the United States on charges of money laundering and tax evasion. He renounced his American citizenship and became a Panamanian citizen in the 1990's.

Early life and career Harris was born around 1965.

With Jerome Schneider, Harris set up banks in Montserrat that included, among others, the Allied Reserve Bank, Fidelity Overseas Bank, and First City Bank, but these were all closed down by the Montserrat authorities around 1988.

Panama In 1989 or 1990, Harris left the United States as a result of what he called U.S. Internal Revenue Service "persecution". He settled in Panama, renounced his U.S. citizenship, and became a Panamanian citizen. In order to operate in the offshore trust market, Harris bought the Trust Services firm from Robin Bailey and Derek Sambrook in 1995 but the two bought the firm back after becoming disillusioned with Harris's business practices. and escapeartist.com websites, offering services such as second passports, offshore trusts, company formation, investments, asset protection and ancillary services. The firm used a Panama postal address but was incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. In 1998, Harris claimed that his firm had funds under management of $1 billion and $35 million in capital.

Nicaragua and arrest In 2002, Harris moved to Nicaragua, reportedly after things got difficult for him in Panama. In June 2003, he was arrested in Managua when he and his wife were en route to an immigration hearing. He was handed to U.S. Marshals who were waiting for him and flown to Miami to face charges of avoiding $6.2 million of excise tax along with alleged co-conspirators Aurelio and Joseph Vigna who the U.S. government argued were involved in the illegal import into the United States of the ozone-depleting refrigerant chemical Freon. Harris's role was to channel money through one of his trust companies. sentenced to 17 years in jail, and ordered to pay a fine of $27 million which is believed never to have been collected. IRS examination of Harris's records after the trial led to the prosecution of a number of Americans for tax evasion. He was released early, potentially due to health issues, in August 2016.

Selected publications The Private Interest Foundation of Panama. Panama: Harris Publishing, 1998.