Man pleads not guilty in Ohio in Navy charity scam

A recently captured fugitive suspected of running a scam that collected up to $100 million in donations for U.S. Navy veterans pleaded not guilty Tuesday to state charges, and a judge wary that he might disappear again ordered him kept locked up.

The man calls himself Bobby Thompson, though authorities don't believe that's his name but have been unable to identify him otherwise.

The man was arrested last week in Portland, Ore., by U.S. marshals after nearly two years as a fugitive.

Authorities believe he defrauded donors of up to $100 million in 41 states since 2001, including $2 million in Ohio. A fraction of the money has been found.

Authorities say Thompson's Tampa, Fla.-based charity, known as the U.S. Navy Veterans Association, made a few sporadic contributions that benefited veterans, but public records show the man behind it contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to political candidates around the country.

Court: Online bookseller owes New Mexico sales tax

A nationally known online bookseller must pay more than a half million dollars in taxes for books, music and movies bought by customers in New Mexico, the state Court of Appeals has ruled in a dispute over the state's power to tax corporate chains and Internet shopping.

The court's decision came Wednesday in a case involving an out-of-state online business, Barnes&nobles.com, LLC, which was part of the corporate family of bookseller Barnes & Noble Inc.

The online retailer was assessed gross receipts taxes in 2006 of $534,563 for sales from 1998 to 2005. The company protested and a state agency hearing officer agreed with the company that it wasn't required to collect and pay the tax because it had no presence in the state or what is known as a "substantial nexus" with New Mexico.

The online retailer was organized under Delaware laws and it had no employees or offices in the state. However, a separate Barnes and Noble company operates three bookstores in New Mexico, with the first of those started in Albuquerque in 1996 and the most recent in Las Cruces in 2003