Failure to Pay Employee Tax Withholdings by Pastor
A Shaker Heights, Ohio, pastor was charged with six counts of willful failure to collect and pay taxes.
A criminal information alleges that Charles J. Matthews, 58, failed to pay at least $90,676 in income and FICA taxes that were withheld from employees at Cleveland’s Mount Sinai Baptist Church and Ministries from October 2005 to January 2007.
Matthews was the senior pastor at Mt. Sinai and oversaw financial affairs of the church. He was responsible for collecting income and FICA taxes from Mt. Sinai employees and paying the IRS.
He operated two accounts — a general church operating account and an account for Matthews’ use, known as the “pastor’s account.”
The taxes were collected and withheld from Mt. Sinai employees, but Matthews willfully failed to report and pay over the money to the IRS.
Instead, Matthews used those funds for other purposes, including transferring money to the “pastor’s account” for his personal use, according to the information. IRS Criminal Investigation Division brought this case to prosecution.
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Tags: failing to pay income taxes, failure to pay employment taxes, tax cheat, tax evasion, tax resolution services
