Rodeo Entrepreneur Salman Salman Sentenced for $3.4 Million Tax Evasion Scheme

OAKLAND – In a brazen display of fiscal dishonesty, 47-year-old Rodeo, California entrepreneur Salman Salman pleaded guilty to a $3.4 million tax evasion scheme.

According to court documents, Salman Salman masterminded a scheme to evade taxes by filing false Form 1040 joint income tax returns for himself and his wife for tax years 2016 through 2019. The Plug Tattoo & Piercing, Inc., S&S Real Estate Investment Group, and Synergy Investment Group Ohio Inc. were among the businesses that Salman Salman owned and operated during the course of the scheme.

Salman Salman admitted to falsely underreporting income from his companies and claiming false and overstated expenses as part of his scheme to reduce his tax obligations. In total, Salman Salman failed to disclose over $3.4 million in income he received from his companies for tax years 2016 through 2019.

Salman Salman was charged by information with four counts of tax evasion, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7201, on December 11, 2023. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Salman Salman admitted the conduct alleged as support for all four counts in the information, but pleaded guilty to Count Four, which charges him with tax evasion for tax year 2019.

Salman Salman faces a maximum prison term of five years, a maximum fine of $250,000, and restitution of at least $438,247 to the IRS. Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. has scheduled Salman Salman’s sentencing hearing for September 18, 2024.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Green, with the assistance of Kay Konopaske and Christine Tian of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.