NY SUES SPRINT FOR $300 MILLION AFTER WHISTLEBLOWER FINANCIAL INVESTMENT FIRM REVEALS SCHEME

Following on a whistleblower lawsuit, New York sued Sprint Nextel Corporation today for more than $300 million saying the company committed tax fraud in deliberately not collecting or paying millions of dollars in taxes for its cell phone service. The New York Attorney General said that Sprint’s decision not to collect and pay taxes was part of the Overland Park Kansas based company’s nationwide effort to lure customers from its rivals such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless and make its service $4.6 million less epensive per month. The original action was filed on march 31, 2011 by whistleblower Empire State Ventures LLC under the New York False Claims Act. Empire State Ventures is listed as a financial investment firm in New York.