Days like this remind me just how dull my colleagues are . . . and that is a good thing. IRS attorney and Georgetown Adjunct Law Professor Jack Vitayanon, 41, has been arrested in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams of methamphetamine.
Vitayanon is more Walter White than Jesse Pinkman. He is graduated from Dartmouth in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree and Columbia University with a law degree. He also received a master’s of law degree in taxation from New York University School of Law. He was then hired by the prestigious Debevoise & Plimpton firm in New York City. He later was hired by the Office of Professional Responsibility at the IRS.
Not exactly the profile of a meth dealer.
Law enforcement seized a FedEx package bound for Oceanside, Long, Island containing 460 grams of meth. When they nailed the recipient, she implicated Vitayanon as the source. She then cooperated in a taped internet video chat with Vitayanon.
Agents recounted how they saw Vitayanon smoking what appeared to be meth. They also have what they say is a text from Vitayanon saying that he was packaging the meth and requesting a $1,650 deposit for a bank account connected to him. They ultimately searched his apartment and found methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, packaging materials and drug ledgers.
Hmmmm, JT claims not to know Georgetown Adjunct Law Professor Jack Vitayanon, arrested in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams of methamphetamine. Yet, JT is mysteriously visiting Guam of all places, a key location for drug operations; in particular, crystal methamphetamine. A wild coincidence? I think not:
The flow of goods and people into Guam presents opportunities for drug smuggling into the territory. Guam imports more than 75 percent of its food and industrial goods from the U.S. mainland. Tourism is a significant source of revenue in the territory. Over the past 20 years the tourist trade has grown rapidly, creating many jobs in the construction industry as the need increased for new hotels and other structures.
The transportation infrastructure on Guam is limited. There are 170 miles of paved roads and nearly 620 miles of unpaved roads. The island has a 77-mile coastline, and Apra Harbor is the major port. There are three airports with paved runways, but the island has no rail system.
Most drugs are transported to Guam through the Guam International Air Terminal; seizures are made from passengers, baggage, and cargo. Couriers transport drugs on their bodies or in their luggage. Other transporters conceal drugs in a variety of ways, for example, in false-bottomed coolers and suitcases, inside frozen fish, intermingled with woodcarvings, and hidden in other airfreight cargo. Limited quantities of drugs are transported to Guam through package delivery services; smuggling via this method is not common because the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency inspects all mail entering Guam from foreign countries.
The drug problem on Guam continues to evolve. Historically, marijuana was the primary drug available in the territory; however, crystal methamphetamine has become more prominent on Guam over the past decade.
Hey Ralph, have you stopped beating your wife? Metaphorically, of course.
So you’re suggesting that JT is a drug mule? Brother, you are seriously delusional!
We don’t know why this Georgetown law professor and IRS attorney was allegedly involved with meth. He is obviously a very high achiever and most likely started snorting coke to keep up with the demands of his Wall Street law job. Then when he went to the IRS he was on a government salary and had to switch to meth because it’s a lot cheaper. There is a lot of stimulant abuse on Ivy League campuses and in demanding professions. People take something to give them the energy they need, and become addicted very, very quickly. The IRS will probably throw him in the street, but I would prefer to see him go to rehab.
Hey, lighten up!
I’m trying, I’m trying….
The old Affluenza Defense for the Ivys. I like it.
Who says he is affluent? He looks Asian. Maybe he/and or his parents are immigrants and he got into excellent colleges by studying his butt off. I saw that a lot when I was in college. Foreign students and immigrants were working hard and taking difficult classes like engineering and science, while American students were often there to party and pick up a degree in a easy major along the way. I read a study a few years back that said that the longer any immigrant group has been in the U.S., the less diligent they are academically. In other words, 1st generation students work hard, 2d generation less so, and by 3d generation, they’re spoiled, lazy screw-offs. And the statistics reportedly hold true no matter where in the world the people immigrated from.
Oh, and this is what troubles me when there is discussion about legalization of drugs. I lean Libertarian on many issues. I understand the argument that we should be able to do what we want with our own bodies, and we don’t want to live under a nanny state controlling our diet. But addiction is so grim. And with the FDA, I can’t see how we could ever legalize such a hard drug as meth that is pure poison. Marijuana has many beneficial properties, but meth, bath salts, etc are just deadly.
That is so sad. Addiction absolutely possesses the user, until he sacrifices everything. They can’t make rational decisions while in the throes. I understand that the disease is a self inflicted one, but it’s still sad. No one thinks this will happen to them, that it’s all fun and games.
It’s made with such hideously toxic stuff. The only way I can imagine anyone would put it into their bodies is they must already be addicted to something else first.
“The only way I can imagine anyone would put it into their bodies is they must already be addicted to something else first.”
According to JT’s post this man was hired by the IRS in their “Office of Professional Responsibility”. Perhaps he was making a choice between abusing the power of his office or his body and career? Here is what that office has on their site:
OPR is committed to:
Independent, fair and equitable treatment of all tax practitioners consistent with our Title 31 authority and principles of due process.
Rendering fair and independent determinations regarding alleged misconduct in violation of Circular 230, Regulations Governing Practice before the Internal Revenue Service.
Educating/maintaining tax professionals’ knowledge of relevant Circular 230 provisions.
Providing guidance and feedback to field/agency sources regarding essential referral criteria for each relevant Circular 230 provision.
Strengthening partnerships with other parts of the IRS and with external practitioner organizations.
Developing procedures that ensure timely case resolution.
Developing policies and regulations that ensure fair and equitable disposition of Circular 230 cases.
Developing and implementing proactive strategies for identifying violations of Circular 230.
Given what this agency has ACTUALLY been doing, Mr. Vitayanon might have more than just inner demons he’s fighting.
Are you referring to the targeting of conservatives by the IRS? It saddens me how deeply politics has penetrated into formerly unbiased organizations. The DOJ and FBI are other good examples.
Regardless, I always grieve to see someone self destruct over drugs or other defeating behavior. It’s just so sad. His own hand may have set this series of events in motion, but at some point early in the process he thought he was just having fun. It just makes me cringe.
You know it’s really very sad that drugs – especially meth — is such a pernicious, as well as dangerous, drug. I feel bad for this guy whose life is at least temporarily ruined by Meth. The meth cases I’ve been involved in and others that I’ve seen involve incredibly pathetic people. We should all remember that no one becomes a meth addict because it sounds like a good thing to be. A little sympathy for this guy and his family. Remember, of all the drugs, the only one that had this attribution during the wild 60s was meth: “Meth Kills” was heard from heroin, coke, marijuana, LSD users because they knew better than straights what power meth has over people – worse than heroin in my book.
Didn’t know that it was more dangerous than Heroin. But I would have thought the before and after pictures on the internet, would have kept him off the stuff with his degrees.
So, I presume he won’t be keeping his law degree?
He was hired by the IRS to go after Tea Party organizations and needed the energy to keep pace w/ the Obama directives.
How’s that for inserting a crazy political spin?
What do they say about jest and truth, I like the direction of the spin.
The complaint is an amazing read. I’m not a lawyer, but the evidence against him seems to be overwhelming.
I assume the system is rigged to ensure he receives full pay and benefits until he exhausts all of his appeals?
“Not exactly the profile of a meth dealer.”
******************
Given what the Ivys are producing these days –smug, materialist, entitled and contemptuous of the law — I’d say he’s exactly the profile of a meth dealer:
Clearly this is evidence that Trump’s Presidency has stopped this country from progressing (at least according to Issac). We’re now falling behind “more advanced” countries and have stopped “evolving” as people. We were “this” close to perfecting human nature under Obama’s reign and now look, even the IRS attorneys are dealing and using meth.
Trump must be impeached and God forbid Betsy DeVos get confirmed by the Senate. They’ll set us back centuries.
[sarc off]
Given how much harder Sudafed is to get now at the drugstore, maybe he was just making Sudafed out of meth.
It’s gratifying to see justice treating someone with money and legal knowledge the same as those in poverty without education. That happens so rarely.
Georgetown is a cesspool.
This guy has to be the world’s most naive “drug distributor.” He allegedly went on a video chat with his customer and she knew his name and where he worked! Who does that? It sounds like he wasn’t a dealer, so much as someone with a habit who was passing along meth to another user to help defray his costs. I read elsewhere that he has been with the IRS for only a few years, and was subject to an intense background investigation and drug screening as part of obtaining his security clearance. So whatever drove him to drugs happened at the IRS. It’s really a shame; lots of wasted potential.
You cannot imagine how sorry he is about this. He’ll never do it again, and he swears he’s been changed for the good by this experience.
Overachiever.
What is his race or ethnicity? Maybe he hails from some country that worships meth use and has a constitutional right to come into this country and bring in his meth. There is a Judge out on the West Coast who may stand up for him.
I don’t know of any country that “worships meth use,” but I believe the U.S. is the biggest manufacturer and consumer of it, unfortunately.
I suppose everyone should be allowed a hobby, a little extra income. Those student loans don’t pay themselves off.
Paul – I’m just grateful that no children were harmed by that particular poison. Wait – come to think of it, was anyone harmed? We know that lots of special interests benefited from the arrests of these perps/victims of anti-liberty laws that are designed to be acceptable forms of welfare.
I know I’ll sleep better tonight knowing those perverted purveyors of poison are off the streets and that their lives will be destroyed by our Drug Warriors. Good job!
P.S. I have a family member who also has an LLM , Taxation, NYU. Also an MBA from the Stern school/NYU.
bill mcwilliams – no students were harmed in the making of my statement. This statement was overseen by the Society for the Protection of Endangered Snowflakes.
Paul –
To you and your Snowflakes – I say that it’s high time we legalize freedom here in the United Snakes.
bill mcwilliams – the special snowflakes are NOT mine.
Paul
Not yours? Well then, you must be very close to them. Your flaky friends must surely appreciate your concern. Assuming that you believe in liberty and freedom, I take it that you support the goals of L.E.A.P. –
All freedom-loving Americans should their worthy goals.
God bless you, Mr. Rosewater.
bill mcwilliams – I have no idea what L.E.A.P. is. I belong to two book clubs. That is the extent of my joining anything.
Leap is a “tinny” word. Perfectly dreadful: sort of PVC-y sort of word don’t you know?
I think you’re collecting all these peoples.
LOL!