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NEW ROCHELLE, NY – James Pavlounis, 58, will spend the next three years and one month behind bars after admitting to a long-running scheme to bilk the Social Security Administration and dodge taxes. U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton announced the sentence today, capping a case that exposed a decade-plus of brazen deceit.
Pavlounis, who pleaded guilty before Judge Philip Halpern last September, falsely claimed he was disabled from January 2013 to March 2025, raking in an estimated $646,370 in Social Security benefits he didn’t deserve. The catch? He was simultaneously running a thriving valet parking operation, pocketing cash while pretending he couldn’t work.
The scam didn’t stop there. From 2018 to 2022, Pavlounis deliberately shielded the profits of his company, Select Parking Systems Inc. (SPS), from the IRS. He used a family member as a straw owner and concealed income, allowing SPS to avoid paying roughly $248,810 in taxes. He allegedly used company funds to cover personal expenses.
Prosecutors say Pavlounis operated SPS as if it wasn’t profitable, a transparent attempt to fool the taxman. The judge wasn’t buying it. The feds are hoping this sends a message to others thinking of playing the system: honesty matters, especially when it comes to Social Security and taxes.
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