UNITED STATES ATTORNEY
GRETCHEN C.F. SHAPPERT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, JANUARY 31, 2008

CONTACT: SUELLEN PIERCE
704.338.3120
FAX 704.227.0264

DNK TRUCKING PRESIDENT INDICTED ON BRIBERY CHARGES Government Alleges Defendant Attempted to Bribe an IRS Revenue Agent CHARLOTTE, N.C. - U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced that Dan Iosif Kalman Baciu a/k/a “Dan Kalman,” President of DNK Trucking in Hickory, NC, was charged in a federal indictment with two counts of bribery of an IRS Revenue Agent and two counts of paying an illegal gratuity to an IRS Revenue Agent. The indictment was filed in U.S. District Court in Charlotte under seal on Thursday, January 24, 2008 and was unsealed today. Kalman Baciu was arrested this morning at his home without incident.

The federal indictment against Kalman Baciu alleges that he was the subject of a civil audit of his personal 2005 federal income tax return with regard to his reporting of the income of DNK Trucking. In his initial meeting with the IRS Revenue Agent conducting the audit, Kalman Baciu handed the Revenue Agent an envelope containing cash, which she immediately returned.

In a subsequent meeting which the Revenue Agent recorded, Kalman Baciu provided the Revenue Agent with an envelope containing $10,000 in cash in return for the Revenue Agent’s agreement to reduce Kalman Baciu’s tax liability by approximately $55,000 for the 2005 tax year and to avoid any audit of his tax returns to the 2006 tax year. Kalman Baciu faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $500,000 fine if convicted of all counts.

A defendant in a criminal case is entitled to a presumption of innocence, and the Government has the burden of proving all charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Any sentence received upon conviction will be influenced by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which the Court consults in order to determine each defendant’s actual sentence based upon a formula that takes into account the severity and characteristics of the offense and the defendant’s criminal history, if any.

U.S. Attorney Shappert credits the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration with leading the investigation that resulted in the filing of the charges. The Government is represented in this matter by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Martens of the U.S. Attorney’s Criminal Division in Charlotte.