June 18, 2001
For Immediate Release
P R E S S R E L E A S E
Carlton S. Yamamoto, Jr., 26, was sentenced on June 13, 2001, to 43-months imprisonment by United States District Judge Susan Oki Mollway for filing three false tax returns on his own behalf, and causing others to file seven additional false tax returns with the IRS. Judge Mollway imposed the imprisonment to run consecutively to a 20-year term which Yamamoto, of Honolulu, is already serving for kidnaping, terroristic threatening, and other state offenses.
Elliot Enoki, United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, said that according to documents filed in court, the tax returns sought approximately $69,000 in refunds based on sham W-2 forms falsely stating that taxes had been withheld by Yamamoto's companies on behalf of the employees, when in fact no such taxes had been withheld. The returns were filed for the 1995 through 1997 tax years.
The federal case was the result of an investigation conducted by the Criminal Investigative Division of the Internal Revenue Service. The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Larry Tong.
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