A former Iowa State cross country coach has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy and tax fraud.

Bill Bergan, who compiled numerous awards during a 25-year coaching career that ended in 1996, was indicted Friday in a U.S. District Court in Des Moines.

Bergan and his wife, Karen, have been charged with failure to report about $530,000 that they received from different sources from 1989 to 1994.

Bill Smith, a Des Moines attorney who is representing the Bergans, said the incident is an unfortunate situation.

“I felt badly for the Bergans. I think they both know they’re innocent. It’s very difficult for them,” Smith said. “They should be found not guilty.”

Smith said the inconsistency on the Bergans’ tax returns could have been a simple computer software error.

Although he hopes his clients are found not guilty, he said it is difficult to predict a jury’s verdict in a claim of crime with intent.

“Many people make mistakes in taxes. The defendant must show they didn’t intend those mistakes,” Smith said. “It’s very difficult.”

He said Bill and Karen Bergan are ready to face the charges, but are disturbed by the negative publicity the indictment has received.

“If they’re found not guilty, the damage is done to their reputation,” Smith said. “Bill Bergan is extremely distressed by this.”

According to information from the Ames Tribune, Bergan failed to report income from a number of sources, including a book business, a sports video, an annual clinic for track coaches, a cross country camp for high school students and the sale of T-shirts and sweatshirts at the Iowa state high school cross country championships.

Also included in the indictment is about $38,000 in fraudulent tax deductions for 1993 and 1994.

A separate charge alleges that Bergan did not provide information returns to the Internal Revenue Service for employees of his cross country camp, according to the Tribune.

John McCarroll, director of University Relations, said he doesn’t know much about the indictment, but that the former coach properly served his duty at ISU.

“Bill was an outstanding coach while he was at Iowa State. His record certainly speaks for itself on that,” McCarroll said.

Kevin Farrow, junior in exercise and sport science and member of the ISU cross country team, said Bergan was a great coach and motivator.

“As a coach, he was a good guy. He cared about the people on his team,” he said.

Farrow added that he supports Bergan in spite of the charges.

“It’s a sad thing that the IRS is making an example of him. Hopefully it will turn out for the best,” he said.

“Such a bad thing couldn’t have happened to a nicer person,” Farrow said.

Although a court date has not been scheduled, Smith said the case could stand trial this summer.

Bergan, who joined the ISU cross country coaching staff in 1971, retired in 1996 after garnering 10 Big Eight team titles and two NCAA championships.

Among other noteworthy achievements throughout his career, Bergan was named to the Iowa Association of Track Coaches Hall of Fame, the Iowa State Cardinal Key National Honor Society and he was named to the Drake Relays Hall of Fame.