April 15, 2009
For more information contact:
Supervisory AUSA Karen Rhew
(850) 942-8430
FORMER TOUCAN’S RESTAURANT OWNER SENTENCED TO
PRISON FOR TAX EVASION, FIREARM AND DRUG POSSESSION
Panama City - Thomas F. Kirwin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced today the sentence of Paul Gregory Francis, of Mexico Beach, Florida to forty-one months’ imprisonment for tax evasion, possession of a methamphetamine, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 7201, Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g), and Title 21, United States Code, Section 844.
On January 28, 2009, Francis pled guilty to a criminal Information charging him with six counts of tax evasion, one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and one count of possession of methamphetamine. Evidence proffered in support of Francis’ plea established that Francis willfully failed to file individual tax returns for himself, and corporate tax returns for Toucan’s Restaurant for the 2005, 2006, and 2007 tax years. During the course of the plea, Francis acknowledged that, between 2005 and 2008, he skimmed more than $1.2 in cash from Toucan’s sales for his personal use, and that he failed to pay more than $806,000 in personal taxes owed. As part of his plea agreement, Francis agreed to pay the Internal Revenue Service over $2 million in back taxes on or before July 31st of this year.
As part of the tax investigation, agents executed search warrants at Francis’ home and Toucan’s. During these searches, agents recovered six firearms and a quantity of methamphetamine methamphetamine. Five of the firearms were loaded, and several were concealed in secret compartments located in Francis’ home and in Toucan’s. Francis was prohibited from possessing firearms as a result of his prior felony conviction for income tax evasion in 1991 in the District of Massachusetts.
At the sentencing hearing held today before the Honorable Richard Smoak, Francis was sentenced to concurrent terms of forty-one months’ imprisonment for the tax evasion and firearms offenses charged in Counts One through Seven of the Information, and a concurrent term of twenty-four months’ imprisonment for the drug possession charged in Count Eight. He was ordered to pay $2,020,001 in restitution to the IRS. The court also imposed a three year term of supervised release to be served at the conclusion of Francis’ prison sentence.
U.S. Attorney Kirwin stated, “Payment of individual and corporate taxes is an obligation of citizenship. The U.S. Attorneys Office is committed to bringing those who flout this obligation to justice and ensuring that the United States recover monies rightfully owed.”
Victor W. Lessoff, Special Agent in Charge of the Tampa Field Office of IRS Criminal Investigation stated, “The prosecution of individuals who intentionally conceal income and evade taxes is a vital element in maintaining public confidence in our tax system. Tax evasion is not a victimless crime. Honest, hardworking Americans pay the price when others choose to evade their tax obligations. This case is an example of how the investigation into violations of tax laws often leads to the discovery of other crimes and how our agency is able to work in concert with state, local, and other federal agencies to bring these individuals to justice. Today, being the deadline for all Americans to file their income tax returns, should remind us of our duty to pay our fair share and of the consequences of evading that responsibility.”
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gayle Littleton.