Mechanicsburg Businessman Pleads Guilty To Failure To Pay Federal Tax

HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Nicholas A. Long, age 30, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty today before United States District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo to willful failure to pay federal taxes.

According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Long pleaded guilty to an information charging him with the willful failure to pay federal payroll taxes owed by his business, Harrisburg Commercial Interiors, LLC during 2013.

An Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigation revealed that Long, through his solely owned commercial drywall business, Harrisburg Commercial Interior, LLC (HCI), willfully did not pay $216,304 in employment taxes during 2013 and 2014. The IRS investigation began when several HCI employees contacted the IRS because they did not receive their 2013 income tax refunds.

As the owner of HCI, Long exercised primary control over the financial affairs of the business, was solely responsible for issuance of all paychecks, and had sole signature authority on HCI's business bank account. Although he issued payroll checks totaling $730,788 in gross wages during 2013 and 2014, Long did not file the requisite Employer's Quarterly and Annual Federal Tax Returns, Forms and 940, with the IRS, nor pay over the $160,399 he withheld from his employees pay checks to the government.

Under the terms of a plea agreement Long agreed to make full restitution in the amount of $216,304.  No date was set by Judge Rambo for sentencing pending completion of a presentence report.

The case was investigated by the Harrisburg Office of the IRS Criminal Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kim Douglas Daniel.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is five years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

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