Unpaid Payroll Taxes by Florida Businessman Caused $1 Million Tax Loss
Unpaid payroll taxes can lead to the downfall of your business. As a business owner, you have a duty to collect the correct amount of taxes and turn them over to the IRS. When payroll taxes go unpaid, the IRS does not mess around. The man in the article below deliberately scammed the IRS of payroll taxes and he will be paying for his crime soon.
The owner and operator of a Florida payroll-processing company pleaded guilty to aiding or assisting in the preparation of false tax returns.
From 2005 to mid-2008, Brian Grafton, 46, of Tampa, Fla., was the owner and operator of Payroll Pro Inc. He was in the business of providing various payroll services for business clients including processing payroll, preparing federal payroll tax forms, and collecting and paying the payroll taxes of his clients.
But instead of turning over all of his clients’ payroll taxes to the IRS, Grafton stole portions of the money collected. From 2005 to March 2008, Grafton accurately calculated the employees’ and employers’ portions of payroll taxes for his clients and then informed his clients of their respective tax liabilities. Grafton collected these taxes to hold for his clients prior to the taxes being paid over to the IRS. However, instead of paying all of these taxes to the IRS, Grafton fraudulently diverted the funds for various business and personal purposes.
In an attempt to cover up the scheme, Grafton prepared tax forms that made sure the amount due to the IRS matched the portion of the money that Grafton did submit to the IRS, minus the amount he skimmed for personal and business use.
In all, Grafton defrauded numerous clients using this scheme, causing $1 million in tax losses to the IRS. He faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
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