$14.6 Million Tax Fraud Scheme Unraveled in Garrard County

$14.6 Million Tax Fraud Scheme Unraveled in Garrard County

LEXINGTON, Ky. – In a brazen display of financial deceit, two Garrard County men have been accused of engaging in a massive tax fraud scheme, involving a staggering $14.6 million.

According to court records unsealed yesterday, Clarence Michel Jr., 47, and Warren Griffin II, 49, allegedly failed to pay $14,671,184 in payroll taxes owed by various staffing companies they operated between 2012 and 2016.

The indictment, presented to the grand jury by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dmitriy Slavin, alleges that Michel and Griffin withheld payroll taxes from their employees’ paychecks but instead of paying that money over to the Internal Revenue Service, they instructed an employee to write checks to themselves.

To hide this scheme, Michel and Griffin allegedly changed the names of their companies and started new companies under the names of various nominee owners, further exacerbating the tax evasion.

The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. Michel is scheduled to appear in court at 1:30PM today, while Griffin has already been arrested in the Southern District of Illinois. His appearance in Kentucky has not yet been set.

For their crimes, each defendant faces up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the conspiracy charge and the charges of failing to pay over payroll taxes. Additionally, each faces 3 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the false statements on their personal taxes.

As with any indictment, Michel and Griffin are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.