A Long Island business person in the construction industry pleaded guilty today to failing to pay over employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
Edward Hansen of Northport, New York, pleaded guilty to one count of willfully failing to collect, truthfully account for, and pay over payroll taxes to the IRS. According to documents filed with the court, Hansen owned and operated steel erection businesses in Suffolk County. From 2008 to 2011, the IRS assessed more than $480,000 in penalties against Hansen for his failure to pay over employment taxes on behalf of several of these businesses. After the last IRS assessment in May 2011, Hansen changed the name of his business to BR-Teck Enterprises Inc., and nominally transferred ownership to another individual. Hansen, however, continued to operate the business and continued to fail to pay over employment taxes. From January 2012 through June 2017, Hansen failed to pay over more than $950,000 in payroll taxes withheld from the wages of BR-Teck’s employees.
Hansen faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for failing to pay over payroll taxes. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys, Abigail Burger Chingos and Jeffrey Bender, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Source: Department of Justice. This site is made available by China PR Agency – Professional Chinese Press Release Distribution service, Great China and Asia PR service provider. 【专业中文新闻稿发布，大中华地区及亚洲网络公关服务商】。