Torrington Man Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kristina O’Connell, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, announced that SERAFINO CANINO, 52, of Torrington, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today in Bridgeport federal court to one count of tax evasion.

According to court documents and statements made in court, CANINO was employed by and had an ownership interest in Innovative Concepts Corporation (“ICC”), a company that manufactured and distributed small power and hand tools.  ICC contracted with factories in Asia through intermediaries located in Taiwan.  The intermediaries were responsible for, among other things, negotiating with the factories in Asia, ensuring the shipment of manufactured products to ICC, and invoicing ICC for the manufacturing of its products.

From 2008 through 2011, CANINO engaged in fraudulent billing using two of ICC’s intermediaries in Taiwan whereby CANINO instructed the intermediaries to charge ICC an inflated price and kick back the overage to CANINO using overseas bank accounts and an overseas corporate entity.  Through this scheme, CANINO improperly received more than $633,000 in income.  CANINO failed to disclose this illegal income to his accountants who prepared his federal tax returns, and he failed to report the income on his 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 tax returns.  The total tax loss to the Internal Revenue Service was $186,358.

CANINO is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill on December 17, 2018, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and more than $430,000 in back taxes, interest and penalties.

This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan L. Wines.