Man 'Seduced' by IRS Agent Appeals Dismissal of His Lawsuit
"I felt like a cheap whore," Vincent Burroughs recalled of the alleged incident.
April 16, 2014— -- An Oregon man who claims an IRS agent seduced him and then didn’t help with his audit is appealing a court's ruling that dismissed his lawsuit.
Vincent Burroughs of Eugene, Ore., told ABC News’ “20/20” in April 2013 that he was suing the United States government and IRS agent Dora Abrahamson for “sexual coercion and the violation of Privacy Act.”
Burroughs alleged that while Abrahamson was auditing him, she sexually coerced him and then stepped down from his audit a few days later. Abrahamson has been dropped from the lawsuit since she had no assets to go after.
However, Burroughs’ attorney, David Moule, recently told “20/20” that their case was dismissed.
“To clarify, the District Court dismissed the case based on arguments by the government that it was immune from lawsuit because it had never waived its immunity for intentional acts of its employees that were committed outside the scope of their employment,” Moule said.
Moule said they have appealed to the Ninth Circuit, saying the district court judge made errors of law.
“I felt like a cheap whore," Burroughs recalled of the alleged incident.
Years ago, Burroughs said he was making good money as a contractor. When the economy hit the skids, his business dried up, quashing his hopes of becoming a full-time motorcycle racer. He got behind on his taxes -- by about $20,000, he figured. When the call came from the IRS a couple of years later, it was Abrahamson on the line, he said.
"And she goes, 'Oh, wait a minute. I think I know you,'" Burroughs told “20/20.” "I go, O.K., how do you know me? And she goes, 'Do you race motorcycles?'"
Burroughs said Abrahamson texted him a picture of herself, but he didn't recognize her. He said the two continued to exchange text messages, some of which became suggestive. About a week or so after the audit began, Burroughs said, he hadn't gathered the papers he needed. He said Abrahamson asked about stopping by to give him a hand. He agreed.
One night in August 2011, Burroughs said he opened his front door to find Abrahamson.
"She said she was going to do my paperwork," Burroughs told “20/20” in an interview last year. "She came up the stairs, knocked on the door. I opened the door."
They went into his bedroom and had sex, Burroughs said.
"She just pushed me back, and I kind of went back, and I landed ... and she immediately came over, got on top of me, started kissing on me,” he told “20/20” at the time. “Then she leaned up and started tearing my shirt off... We finished removing my clothes, removed her clothes, and things happened."
A few days after the sexual encounter, Burroughs said, Abrahamson called and said she was stepping down from his audit due to a conflict of interest. His new IRS agent said he owed around $69,000.
In court papers, Abrahamson denied Burroughs' allegations that she sexually coerced him. She declined an interview request from ABC News.
