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Virginia Subcontractors Sentenced for Tax Evasion

APR. 24, 2018

18-527

DATED APR. 24, 2018
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Citations: 18-527

OWNERS OF VIRGINIA SUBCONTRACTING FIRM SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR TAX EVASION

Used Business Accounts to Evade Paying Their Income Tax Liability

TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 2018

WASHINGTON — A Virginia husband and wife were each sentenced today for tax evasion and conspiring to structure currency transactions, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department's Tax Division.

Business owner Jeffrey Dalton was sentenced to 27 months in prison, and his wife and co-owner of the business, Karen Dalton, was sentenced to six months in prison.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Jeffrey and Karen Dalton owned Blue Ridge Stainless Inc. (BRS), a subcontracting business that provided labor to renovate large retail department and grocery stores. The Daltons operated BRS out of their home in Hillsville, Virginia. The Daltons filed their 2009 through 2014 personal tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reporting the income earned from BRS, but failed to pay the taxes, penalties, and interest owed. Despite an IRS revenue officer repeatedly contacting the Daltons over a period of years about their delinquent taxes and pending IRS liens, the Daltons refused to pay their outstanding tax liabilities, used nominees to conceal their ownership of property, and filed false documents with the IRS. After the IRS levied the Daltons' personal bank accounts, they used funds from the BRS business bank account to start a cattle business and pay their children's wedding expenses.

The evidence at trial also proved that during a six-month period in 2015 the Daltons repeatedly withdrew cash from BRS's business bank account in amounts less than $10,000 to evade federal bank-reporting requirements, and structured more than $250,000 in withdrawals.

In addition to the terms of imprisonment imposed, U.S. District Court Judge James P. Jones ordered Jeffrey and Karen Dalton to serve two years of supervised release.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Daniel McGraw and Sean Beaty, who prosecuted the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division's website.

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