United States Attorney Richard H. Stephens announced that Rockwall, Texas residents, Oscar Luther Rager and Monica Ticer Peters, were each convicted today by a federal jury in Dallas, Texas on one count of conspiracy to commit tax evasion and one count of tax evasion. Sentencing is set for October 1, 2001 before the Honorable United States District Judge Sam A. Lindsay. Rager, age 46, and Peters, age 36, could each receive up to 10 years imprisonment and a $500,000 fine.

During the two-week long jury trial, the government proved that Rager and Peters, who owned a cast stone business named Monicast Stone, L.C. in Rockwall, Texas, failed to pay $105,291.21 in owed payroll taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for 1994, 1995 and 1996 and engaged in affirmative acts of tax evasion. At trial, the government further proved that Rager and Peters fraudulently transferred certain assets of Monicast in a sham transaction, while continuing to carry on business operations under a different name and diverting funds for their own personal use.

United States Attorney Stephens praised the investigative efforts of the IRS - Criminal Investigation as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Lynn Hastings and John Helms prosecuted the case.

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