Hear now the sad tale of Jerome Schneider, convicted architect of illegal tax shelters for thousands who may now be prosecuted in their turn:

Today, Mr. Schneider said, he is broke. "I lost everything,'' he said. "My wife divorced me and with the legal fees, everything is gone."

Asked about the millions of dollars he earned setting up offshore banks, he replied, "It is gone, all gone."

Or something like that:

Since he has held himself up as the world's leading expert on hiding money offshore, how could one know for sure if Mr. Schneider really is broke? The I.R.S. agents listening to the question put their hands to their mouths to repress grins.

"If you can find it," Mr. Schneider said, "I would say take it."