Federal appeals court denies motion to delay actor Wesley Snipes' tax evasions trial

OCALA, Florida -- Actor Wesley Snipes' attempt to delay his federal tax-evasion trial was denied Tuesday by a federal appeals court in Atlanta.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied a motion from Snipes' legal team to put the trial on hold and granted federal prosecutors' motion to dismiss a change of venue request.

The trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 14 in this central Florida city, located about 80 miles (129 kilometers) north of Orlando. The actor's legal team has argued Snipes cannot get a fair trial in Ocala.

A federal indictment charges Snipes with fraudulently claiming refunds totaling almost $12 million (£á8.1) in 1996 and 1997 for income taxes already paid. Snipes was also charged with failure to file returns from 1999 through 2004.

Snipes allegedly conspired with American Rights Litigators' founder Eddie Ray Kahn and tax preparer Douglas P. Rosile Sr. to file false refund claims based on a bogus argument that only income from foreign sources was subject to taxation.

Lawyers argued Snipes had the right to a trial in New York, where he lived between October 2000 and April 2005 when the offenses allegedly occurred, or in Orlando, where he also has a home.

A message left with Snipes' attorney by The Associated Press was not immediately returned Tuesday evening.