Strip Liquor Store Owner Pleads Guilty To Conspiracy To Defraud The IRS

          LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The owner of several liquor stores on the Las Vegas Strip has pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the IRS for failing to report income that was skimmed from the businesses, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Ramzi Suliman pleaded guilty on July 14, 2014, to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States.  Suliman faces up to five years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine, and is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lloyd D. George on Jan. 12, 2015.

Suliman and co-defendant Jeffrey Nowak were originally charged in a criminal indictment dated April 10, 2013, with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, three counts of assisting in filing false corporate tax returns, and four counts of attempting to evade and defeat tax.  Nowak’s case is pending, and he is currently scheduled for trial beginning Dec. 3, 2014.

According to Suliman’s guilty plea memorandum, from about 2006 to present, Suliman and Nowak owned and operated three liquor stores in Las Vegas, Super Liquor South Strip at 3999 S. Las Vegas Boulevard, Super Liquor Mid Strip at 2301 S. Las Vegas Boulevard, and Super Liquor McCarran Village at 384 E. Tropicana Avenue. Suliman stated in his plea agreement that he and Nowak diverted cash receipts from the stores to their own use by presenting false books and records to the corporate accountant for use in preparing corporate and individual tax returns for the businesses and the defendants. 

From about 2006 to 2009, Suliman admitted that he and Nowak maintained multiple sets of accounting records for their liquor stores, and that they skimmed some of the cash received from one of the stores and agreed not to report it the IRS. Suliman reported that they omitted the skimmed cash from the accounting records that were provided to the accountant for the preparation of their tax returns.  Suliman admitted that he was aware of and consented to the skim and occasionally made entries in the records.  Suliman admitted that his participation in the conspiracy to defraud the IRS resulted in a tax loss to the government of $200,000 to $400,000 for the years 2006 to 2009.

The case is being investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn C. Newman.