Press Release
East Lyme Fisherman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Tax Evasion
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Connecticut
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that PETER TORRES, 48, of East Lyme, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to three months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for tax evasion.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2006 to 2011, TORRES failed to file tax returns and report to the Internal Revenue Service approximately $1.27 million in gross income generated through his work as a commercial fishing boat captain.
On November 30, 2015, TORRES pleaded guilty to one count of attempted tax evasion, admitting that he was issued Forms 1099 that documented the income paid to him for each tax year, but he failed to timely file his tax returns as required and report the income and tax due to the IRS. In his plea agreement, TORRES agreed that the tax loss for this period is between $250,000 and $550,000.
TORRES also admitted that, in an effort to conceal his income from the IRS, he negotiated checks he received as payment for his fishing services by depositing them in the bank and, on the same day, withdrawing cash or obtaining bank checks in varying amounts under $10,000.
As part of his guilty plea, TORRES acknowledged that he attempted to evade the assessment and payment of his taxes for the 2006 through 2011 tax years. He will enter into a payment plan with the IRS to repay the back taxes and applicable penalties and interest.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King.
Updated September 8, 2016
Topic
Tax
Component