Construction Company Owner Charged With Fraud

PHILADELPHIA - Yong Quan Zheng, 61, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by Information with mail fraud, tax fraud, and transporting illegal aliens, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.  Zheng was the owner of Hong Fai General Contractors, a construction company which performed general construction and remodeling work in the greater Philadelphia area.  In addition to his ownership of a construction company, Zheng also owned a money service business which he operated at the same address as well as multiple residential and commercial properties in the Philadelphia area.  

The Information alleges that Zheng employed workers and independent contractors at his businesses, many of whom he paid in cash, and that he failed to collect and pay over to the Internal Revenue Service employment and income taxes based on the wages paid to his workers.  Some of the workers had entered or remained in the United States in violation of United States immigration laws.  The Information further alleges that Zheng used the United States mail to send materially false information to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry regarding the number of individuals that he employed and the wages paid to the worker, in furtherance of a scheme to defraud the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry out of unemployment compensation insurance premiums.

If convicted, Zheng faces a substantial period of incarceration, a $400 special assessment, a possible fine, and a period of supervised release.   

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Reserve Board Office of Inspector General, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and IRS Criminal Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Judy Smith and Floyd J. Miller.

         An Information is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.