Morris Zukerman is a financier who worked at Morgan Stanley from 1972 to 1988, rising to Managing Director and joint head of the bank's energy group. He founded M.E. Zukerman & Co. Inc., an investment firm focused on energy investments, where he served as Chairman, and was involved in notable deals such as the $267 million sale of Penreco oil company, which contributed to later tax evasion charges. He is the founder and CEO of Lafer Equity Investors, a risk arbitrage firm, and an early mentor to Daniel Loeb. Zukerman faced significant legal challenges, including indictment in May 2016 by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York on charges of tax evasion and obstruction of the IRS, accused of evading over $45 million in federal income and New York sales taxes through schemes involving fraudulent charitable deductions from a 2009-2010 Maine real estate transaction (Frenchboro land deal) and art-related evasion. He pleaded guilty on June 27, 2016, to one count of tax evasion and one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct the IRS, and was sentenced on March 21, 2017, to 70 months in federal prison, a $10 million fine (affirmed on appeal), and restitution, reporting to prison in July 2017. He was granted compassionate release in April 2020 due to health concerns amid COVID-19. Personally, he is a long-time summer resident of Islesford, Cranberry Isles, Maine, owning a cottage there for decades.