WLTX-TV is reporting former that Columbia City Councilman E.W. Cromartie has returned home after serving 10 months in federal prison for tax evasion.
The former Councilman was released from incarceration in Williamsburg County last Friday. Cromartie’s attorney said his client is currently on home confinement, but is unsure how long he will remain under those terms of release.
In September last year, a judge sentenced Cromartie on charges of tax evasion. In March of that same year, prosecutors announced that Cromartie made false misleading statements to the Internal Revenue Service and failed to pay $25,316 in taxes in 2004. Federal prosecutors alleged that Cromartie owed the government a total of $58,075.
Cromartie entered into a plea agreement with federal prosecutors and resigned shortly after. In his plea, Cromartie admitted to earning more than $200,000 in small cash deposits and withdrawals to avoid IRS minimums on transaction reporting requirements.
It’s no secret that the IRS is tasked with detecting and prosecuting tax fraud and tax evasion.
Common IRS allegations include:
- failure to pay, or under payment of, personal or business income taxes,
- failure to file personal or business taxes,
- misrepresentation of income,
- supporting deductions with fraudulent documentation,
- Hiding assets in an offshore bank account,
- Claiming deductions you are not eligible for, and
- Money laundering
If you are contacted by a SCDOR or IRS agent, you should contact our South Carolina tax evasion attorney for a free consultation to discuss your legal rights. While your first inclination may be to contact your accountant, it is important to remember that conversations with your accountant are not protected in a criminal investigation or prosecution. Accountants are an integral part of the defense team in any criminal tax matter, but only when they have been retained by counsel and thus are brought within the attorney-client privilege under U.S. v. Koval , 296 F.2d 918 (2d Cir. 1961) and other intepretive cases. Call us today for a free consultation to hear how we can help. 803-252-4800
By: Pete Strom, Federal Tax Evasion Attorney
