Albuquerque Woman Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion

Albuquerque Woman Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion

ALBUQUERQUE – Shelda Sutton Mendoza, 60, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty this morning to evading federal taxes, marking a major victory for federal authorities in their ongoing battle against tax evasion.

Under the terms of her plea agreement, Sutton Mendoza faces a prison sentence of 10 to 16 months in prison followed by not more than three years of supervised release. Additionally, she will be required to pay $167,362 in restitution to the IRS.

The charges stem from Sutton Mendoza’s time as the owner and sole shareholder of NYSNC Environmental, Inc. (NYSNC), an environmental clean-up and testing service established in 2000 and incorporated in October 2003. At the time of the crimes charged in the indictment, Sutton Mendoza was employed in the Petroleum Storage Bureau of the New Mexico Environmental Department for more than six years before leaving to establish NYSNC.

The indictment charged Sutton Mendoza with evading federal personal and corporate taxes during tax years 2003, 2004, and 2005 by intentionally filing false tax returns that misrepresented her personal and corporate taxable income.

According to the plea agreement, Sutton Mendoza routinely used NYSNC funds to pay for personal expenses. In 2003 and 2004, she used more than $70,000.00 in company funds to pay for a custom-designed in-ground swimming pool with custom mosaic murals and more than $200,000.00 in company funds to pay for personal clothing, handbags, and cosmetics.

In her plea agreement, Sutton Mendoza admitted that for tax years 2003 and 2004, she signed and filed false personal and corporate federal tax returns which omitted significant personal and corporate income. She acknowledged intentionally filing a false tax return for NYSNC for calendar year 2003 in which she reported only $1,447,855.00 of the company’s gross income of $1,803,844.52, and thus evaded $17,021.00 in federal taxes.

Sutton Mendoza’s sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled. The case was investigated by the IRS, Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary L. Higgins.

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