John Anthony Castro, a private citizen and a long-shot GOP presidential hopeful from Texas, who made a name for himself by filing over 24 legal challenges to take former President Donald Trump off the ballot in those states, was arrested on Tuesday for federal tax charges, relating to a 33-count federal indictment for aiding the preparation of false tax returns. 

Castro was arrested on charges that he knowingly filed false tax documents to the IRS. According to prosecutors, Castro ran a virtual tax-preparing business that gave customers a tax refund far greater than what they would normally get, thereby defrauding the federal government. According to court documents in Castro's case, prosecutors make damning allegations against him.

“Castro would promise a significantly higher refund than taxpayers could receive from other preparers and on many occasions, offered to split the additional refund with taxpayers,” prosecutors said in court documents. “In order to achieve these larger refunds, Castro generated false deductions, that were not based in fact, and which were submitted without the taxpayer’s knowledge.”

According to the filings, Castro was busted by an undercover police officer who pretended to be a customer for Castro's tax services. The undercover police officer was told by a "reputable" tax preparer that he would receive a $373 tax refund. Castro told the officer that he could get him a $6,007 refund and would split that refund with him in cash, upon receipt. Castro allegedly filed tax returns on the undercover officer's behalf that indicated almost $30,000 in falsely claimed tax deductions.

Castro told The Hill that he denies wrongdoing and believes the case is politically motivated, “no question about it.”

He said his firm settled the tax return matter with the IRS in 2021, claiming that certain clients misinterpreted tax law. Castro said his firm paid back about $700,000 in 2021 to resolve the discrepancies.

“I don’t care if they offered me one day probation and a slap on the wrist in exchange for a guilty plea,” he said. “This is going to trial. I am going to convince all 12 jurors that I am 100 percent innocent and that this is political retaliation.”

Castro alleges that the indictments and subsequent arrest, are all politically motivated and are in response to Castro's 14th Amendment challenges against Trump in the over 24 states where he filed them. Castro's indictment was on the same day that one of his legal challenges against Trump in New Hampshire was dismissed. Challenges in Florida and now in Nevada have also been dismissed as well, though several other challenges from Castro are still pending. The Nevada challenge in particular makes some familiar accusations against Castro, claiming that his legal challenge was not completely factual.

In her ruling, the judge noted Castro’s prior comments show that he “is creating his own injury in order to manufacture standing to challenge Trump’s eligibility to run for president.”

Notably, the judge did not weigh in on the validity of the argument that Trump should be disqualified under the 14^th Amendment.

Castro's presidential candidacy is also one of intriguing details as well. As a private citizen with no political and or elected experience, his political resume is strikingly bare. Furthermore, even Castro himself alluded to the Associate Press that he really isn't running for president, rather he is attempting to clear the field of one particular challenger, Donald Trump. His entire "candidacy" is based around his over two dozen legal challenges against Trump to take him off the ballots with the left's 14th Amendment strategy, noting in part that his candidacy's fight is not on the campaign trail, but rather inside the courtroom. 

With Castro's current criminal case against him, he admits that one of the conditions of his release from jail is that he cannot travel outside of the Northern District of Texas, without any prior approval. Castro says that this release condition would jeopardize his future appearances for 14th Amendment challenges in West Virginia, Kansas, and Montana. He is due back in court on January 17th.