Patrick Souter, Failing to Pay Over Payroll Taxes, Wisconsin 2022

Wisconsin – In a shocking turn of events, Patrick Souter, the 57-year-old vice president of Kenwood Keys, has been sentenced to one year and one day in prison for failing to pay over payroll taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

The IRS Criminal Investigation division in Milwaukee investigated this case, which was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad.

According to documents filed in court, federal law requires employers to collect payroll taxes from the wages paid to its employees and to pay over these taxes to the United States through the IRS. The taxes withheld from wages paid to employees are commonly referred to as the ‘trust fund’ portion of payroll taxes. Federal law also requires employers to pay additional payroll taxes to the IRS in an amount equal to the employees’ share of Social Security and Medicare taxes, known as the ‘matching’ portion of payroll taxes.

Records show that for the fifteen years from 2006 through 2020, Souter failed to pay a total of $559,249.82 in payroll taxes. United States District Judge Lynn Adelman, who earlier this year had accepted Souter’s guilty plea, today sentenced Souter to a prison term of one year and one day and ordered him to pay $559,249.82 in restitution to the IRS.

The investigation revealed that Souter regularly failed to pay over to the IRS all or a portion of trust fund payroll taxes that he had withheld from employees’ wages. He also regularly failed to pay to the IRS all or a portion of the matching part of payroll taxes owed by Kenwood Keys.

The case highlights the importance of complying with federal tax laws and the consequences of failing to do so. As a result of Souter’s actions, the IRS has been deprived of millions of dollars in revenue.

For further information, contact Public Information Officer Kenneth Gales at Kenneth.Gales@usdoj.gov or (414) 297-1700.

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