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LOCAL
COUPLE SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR
CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT TAX FRAUD
June 29, 2004
| United States Attorney's Office Southern District of Ohio 221 East Fourth Street - Suite 400 Cincinnati, OH 45202 Tel: 513.684.2115 Fax: 513.684.6710 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
| CINCINNATI
- Phillip and Joanne Caldwell, ages 48 and 41, of Lebanon,
Ohio, were sentenced today in United States District Court
for their conspiracy to defraud the United States for
the purposes of committing tax fraud from the years 1999
to 2003. Gregory G. Lockhart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Eileen J. O'Connor, Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, announced the sentence today handed down by Senior United States District Judge S. Arthur Spiegel. Phillip Caldwell is a former Certified Public Accountant who has worked in the tax and accounting field since the 1980's. His wife, Joanne Caldwell, is a computer programmer who has worked for various companies in the southwestern Ohio area since the late 1980's. Both formerly worked at Fernald. Phillip Caldwell was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 24 months, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. In addition, Phillip Caldwell was ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service of $105,469. Joanne Caldwell was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 12 months and one day, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. In addition, Joanne Caldwell was ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service of $100,926. The Caldwells conspired with each other and co-defendant John Huber, age 36, of Dayton, Ohio, to defraud the United States for the purposes of impeding and impairing the Internal Revenue Service by, among other things, concealing Joanne Caldwell's income through the use of nominee companies, trusts and trustees. In addition, the Caldwells failed to file individual income tax returns reporting the income they earned during the years 1993 through 2001; prepared and submitted W-4 forms to their employer, Fernald, during the years 1995 and 1996 falsely claiming exempt status without a legal or factual basis; used cash extensively in an effort to conceal their income from the IRS from 1993 through 2001; joined The Freedom Connection in 1993, a well-known tax protest organization operating out of the Southern District of Ohio, and operated by Thomas Jeff Frisby, who they knew was later convicted of tax crimes here in Cincinnati; closed all their interest bearing personal bank accounts, and attempted to revoke their social security numbers with the SSA, and their taxpayer status with the IRS. In addition, the Caldwells formed nominee trusts and sheltered their personal and business income and activities through these trusts and their respective bank accounts; and had nominee trustees appointed to these trusts, but maintained exclusive control over the corpus of these trusts, and were the beneficiaries of the payments made by the trusts. Joanne Caldwell also submitted two forms to her employers, one falsely claiming to be a foreign citizen, and one falsely claiming to be a non-resident alien, despite the fact that she was a U.S. Citizen, and continued to reside in Ohio. Finally, after learning that his brother-in-law had been subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury, Phillip Caldwell provided him with backdated documents to present to the grand jury. Judge Spiegel found that Phillip Caldwell obstructed the administration of justice by submitting these records to the grand jury through his brother-in-law, and increased his sentence accordingly. John Huber, of Dayton, Ohio, who has also pled guilty, is scheduled to be sentenced on July 27, 2004. Further questions may be directed to trial attorney Rich Rolwing of the U.S. Department of Justice, Tax Division, Washington, D.C., at (614) 469-5715. For additional comment contact Fred Alverson, Public Affairs Officer at 614.469.5715. The Internet address for the homepage for the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio is www.usdoj.gov/usao/ohs. |