Domino’s Kingpin Sentenced to Year and Day for Tax Crimes

Ammar Jali, 56, of Bethlehem, PA, got a taste of justice today after being sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison, one year of supervised release, and a $50,000 fine for filing false tax returns. The disgraced Domino’s Pizza franchisee was also ordered to pay a whopping $2.5 million to the Internal Revenue Service.

Jali was the sole shareholder of 36 Domino’s Pizza restaurants scattered across Pennsylvania and Ohio. His greed got the best of him, and he pleaded guilty on January 29, 2024, to filing a false tax return for his businesses and himself. The scheme ran from 2014 to 2016, during which Jali underreported the gross receipts for his Domino’s stores by a staggering $10,000,000.

This brazen act of tax evasion caused his accountant to file false tax returns, resulting in over $2.5 million in tax loss for the federal government. ‘Owning your own business often requires taking some risks,’ said U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero. ‘But in underreporting his restaurants’ earnings by millions and millions of dollars, Mr. Jali went beyond risk-taking straight to law-breaking.’

According to Romero, Jali’s actions were a slap in the face to honest taxpayers who follow the law and pay their fair share. ‘In doing so, he was effectively thumbing his nose at both the IRS and all the honest filers who accurately report their income and pay what they owe,’ she added.

IRS Criminal Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Denise Leuenberger echoed Romero’s sentiments, stressing that anyone considering tax evasion should know that IRS-CI agents work tirelessly to investigate and prosecute these crimes. ‘Our largest enforcement program is directed at the portion of American taxpayers who willfully and intentionally violate their known legal duty of filing and paying their taxes,’ she warned.

The case was a joint effort between the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, with Assistant United States Attorney Tiwana Wright leading the prosecution. Jali’s sentence serves as a warning to would-be tax cheats: don’t think you can get away with it, because the IRS and U.S. Attorney’s Office are watching and will bring you to justice.