Set in New York and Panama, this thriller features a murdered judge, the FBI agent determined to solve his case, and a network of Panamanian heroes, all stuck in the murky world of offshore trusts. Were they justified in murdering the judge and stealing his money? Milton Black, a federal judge, is stabbed to death in the antechamber to his courtroom. Attention focuses on the crime boss Gus Sabbatore, a defendant in Judge Black's most recent case, accused by the Internal Revenue Service of overpaying his taxes. After Al Capone went to jail back in the '30s for tax evasion -- the I.R.S. nailed him not for his notorious criminal activities but for tax evasion, after comparing his meager reported taxable income against his grandiose style of living -- mobsters began overstating their income. Congress slammed that door shut by making it a crime to intentionally make a false statement on a tax return. At one point during Sabbatore's trial, Judge Black calls the government's case "frivolous," saying he will not send the defendant to jail for overpaying his taxes. The judge's comments are at odds with the law. Was he bribed? And was the bribe related to his assassination? Grace Loomey, an assistant deputy director of the FBI, takes charge of the murder case. After diving deeply into the opaque waters of off-shore trusts, she comes up with an unexpected solution. The author, Sidney B. Silverman, was a corporate litigator for 43 years. Upon retiring, he went back to school and received a master's degree in philosophy. He is the author of A Happy Life from Courtroom to Classroom, a memoir; and of six previous novels: What Money Can Buy; Divorce Lawyer: A Satyr's Tale; The Prophet, the Pope, and a Jack Mormon; The Wall, the Mount, and the Mystery of the Red Heifer; A Work of Art; and The Man Who Refused To Die.
