Rebekah Joy Williams, Employment Tax Evasion, Oregon 2023

Related Federal Cases

Oregon Concrete Boss Joy Williams Gets 8 Months for Tax Theft · Washington
Portland Attorney Accused of Stealing Client Funds for Lavish Lifestyle · Washington
Nevis’ Bloody Trail of Deceit Unravels in Portland · Washington
Micaela Dutson and Tony Dutson, Tax Evasion and Harassment, Arizona… · Washington
Chemtrade Logistics, Chemtrade Refinery Services, and Marsulex Fine… · Louisiana

Table of Contents

Defendant Sentenced to Federal Prison for Employment Tax Evasion

PORTLAND, Ore.—Rebekah Joy Williams, 44, a resident of Damascus, was sentenced to eight months in federal prison and three years of supervised release for willfully failing to pay employment taxes despite withholding them from employee paychecks.

According to court documents, Williams owned and operated Anbasa Transport LLC and Kelaye Conrete LLC, commercial dump truck hauling and concrete companies registered in Oregon that formerly operated in both Oregon and Washington State. As the sole owner and general manager of both companies, Williams was responsible for collecting, reporting, and paying federal income, Medicare, and Social Security taxes (also known as FICA taxes) on behalf of her employees.

Over a three-year period, from 2015-2017, Williams withheld these taxes from her employees’ paychecks and provided them with paystubs reflecting the withholdings. However, IRS records showed that Williams made no payroll tax payments on behalf of either company from the third quarter of 2015 through the fourth quarter of 2017. In total, Williams failed to pay approximately $112,257 in employment taxes to the IRS.

Williams hired an accountant to address her employment tax issues in 2016 but hid documentation the accountant needed to complete and file required payroll tax returns. She also lied to the accountant, claiming her companies’ payroll records had been damaged when a neighboring business caught fire.

The accountant later told investigators that Williams was financially savvy and aware of her responsibility to pay payroll taxes. Williams spent lavishly from both her personal and business bank accounts, using the withheld payroll taxes to fund vacations, pay her children’s private school tuition, attend professional sporting events, and fund an upscale lifestyle.

On October 19, 2021, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a 19-count indictment charging Williams with willfully failing to collect or pay over employment taxes. She pleaded guilty on November 14, 2022. The case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Claire M. Fay, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.