Two Brooklyn business owners have been caught with their hands dirty, as they pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges in a federal court, the Grimy Times has learned.
Mendy Gorodetsky and Shalom Rabkin, both residents of Brooklyn, N.Y., copped to the crime today in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.
According to court records and admissions made by the defendants, Gorodetsky and Rabkin co-owned Asbestways Services Corp., an asbestos abatement and lead testing company located in Brooklyn. But here’s the kicker – they attempted to evade their income taxes by not reporting the income they earned from Asbestways. And that’s not all – they also spent Asbestways corporate funds for personal use, charging personal expenses on an Asbestways corporate credit card. They even cashed Asbestways gross receipts checks at a check cashing company and used the unreported cash proceeds for personal expenses.
When Gorodetsky and Rabkin filed their 2006 individual income tax returns, they each falsely reported earning no income from Asbestways. Yeah, that’s right – they lied on their tax returns. Gorodetsky admitted that he underreported his income by at least $709,134 and that his criminal conduct between 2006 and 2008 caused a tax loss to the IRS of at least $188,757. Rabkin admitted that he underreported his income by at least $598,491 and that his criminal conduct between 2006 and 2008 caused a tax loss to the IRS of at least $148,999.
Gorodetsky and Rabkin each face a potential maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. And let’s not forget – sentencing is set for Dec. 10, 2012, before U.S. District Judge Jack B. Weinstein. Mark my words, these two are going down.
The case was investigated by IRS – Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Mark Kotila and Jeffrey Bender of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. It’s clear that these two thought they were above the law, but now they’re facing the music. Stay tuned for further updates on this developing story.
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