Motorcycle icon Valentino Rossi (inset), seven-time World Champ, has been found guilty of massive tax evasion in Italy. The inquiry into his tax situation followed upon his decision to declare residence in the UK, taking advantage (how convenient) of that country's status as "resident but not domiciled". Valentino now owes 112 million euros, over 150 million USD. Hard to say why the very young (under thirty), rich, and famous (in the Forbes top 100 for world celebrities) Valentino did this. The word "greed" comes to mind. One can only imagine the effect on his millions of young fans.This is not uncommon in Italy. I recently reported that Arrigo Cipriani was found guilty of massive tax evasion in New York. And Luciano Pavarotti (who is in the hospital at this time, reportedly for pneumonia) at one time was found to owe the Fisco millions upon millions. And, back in the day, Sophia Loren. And....
