Van Buren to Auction
"Survivor' Winner's Property
Van Buren County officials are a step closer to
auctioning off six properties that Richard Hatch hasn't paid taxes
on since 2004.
Hatch, known for winning $1 million on the first
season of the CBS "Survivor'' series in 2000, has properties
in Columbia Township and elsewhere in Van Buren County for which
he owes property taxes.
Officials don't expect Hatch, who is serving
prison time on federal tax fraud charges, to make good on the
$3,030 he owes. Van Buren County Treasurer Karen Makay said there
has been no reply to numerous notices sent on the unpaid property
taxes.
 Hatch
acquired his Van Buren County properties in 2001 and 2002. Except
for one that has a trailer on it, all of them are vacant land. The
Columbia Township properties are unbuildable parcels near Bear
Lake Park and Saddle Lake and a burned-out house that officials
have been trying to get him to clean up, according to Columbia
Township Clerk Mary Burgett.
Nearly 10 letters about his back taxes have been
mailed to Hatch, Makay said. They were sent to the Van Buren
County address on record for him, not the West Virginia prison
where he has been serving time since May 2006.
Hatch, 46, was convicted of withholding
information on income, including "Survivor'' winnings, from
tax returns and sentenced to 51 months in prison. He is appealing,
but is otherwise expected to be released from prison in 2009.
Hatch's Van Buren properties will be foreclosed
on and auctioned off in April, according to the county treasurer,
after which he will no longer be responsible for unpaid taxes.
"Once it's foreclosed, it's the property of
the state,'' Makay said. State law allows a property owner two
years to pay property tax debt before government foreclosure.
Hatch's lawyer, Michael Minns, could not be
reached for comment.
|
