Edmund J. Renaud, Tax Evasion, New York 2008

Buffalo, N.Y. – In a shocking turn of events, Edmund J. Renaud, a 71-year-old attorney from Olean, NY, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for evading the payment of taxes involving his moving companies.

According to U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr., Renaud was convicted of failing to pay employment taxes for businesses he ran from 2002 through 2008. The defendant operated Southern Tier Moving and Storage, Inc., in Olean until 2002, when the Internal Revenue Service assessed over $48,000 in unpaid federal payroll taxes.

After shutting down that entity, Renaud opened Southern Tier Moving and Storage, LLC, where he similarly failed to pay over $86,000 in federal payroll taxes from 2002 until 2006. When IRS revenue officers tried to collect the money, the defendant provided false information about bank accounts and other assets, including a truck he had gotten as a result of accumulating “comp” credits at the Seneca Allegany Casino.

In 2007, Renaud filed an Offer in Compromise, settling about $150,000 in taxes due for payment of only $1500. The information that the defendant provided to the IRS in connection with that Offer in Compromise was false in several respects, including false claims that the defendant was out of business, failure to identify bank accounts, and failure to disclose company assets. In fact, while Renaud was not paying his taxes, his companies were receiving income, and he was gambling heavily. Renaud also was the recipient of a significant Workmen’s Compensation award of approximately $100,000.

The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Toni Weirauch, New York Field Office.

Renaud’s sentence of 15 months in prison is a significant blow to the defendant, who had previously enjoyed a clean reputation as an attorney. The case serves as a reminder that no one is above the law, and that tax evasion will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

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