BOSTON – A West Hartford, Conn. man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Springfield today in connection with evading taxes on the sale of tobacco products.
Sukhdev Singh, 63, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. The sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
From 2008 to 2012, Singh worked with several co-conspirators to evade payment of tobacco excise tax by a wholesale business in Berlin, Conn. to the State of Connecticut. To achieve this, co-conspirators sold smokeless tobacco and cigars to convenience stores and gas stations from a “no-tax” computer and a “tax” computer, and then filed false tobacco tax returns with Connecticut tax authorities.
The charge of conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charges of wire fraud provide for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of money laundering provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; and Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex J. Grant of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Office.
Sukhdev Singh, a 63-year-old man from West Hartford, Conn., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. He worked with several co-conspirators to evade payment of tobacco excise tax by a wholesale business in Berlin, Conn. to the State of Connecticut from 2008 to 2012.
The case is ongoing, and a sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled. Sukhdev Singh faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for conspiracy. He also faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for wire fraud, and up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for money laundering.
Sukhdev Singh, a resident of West Hartford, Conn., was charged with one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering in connection with evading taxes on the sale of tobacco products. He pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Springfield, but a sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
According to the indictment, Sukhdev Singh and his co-conspirators sold smokeless tobacco and cigars to convenience stores and gas stations from a “no-tax” computer and a “tax” computer, and then filed false tobacco tax returns with Connecticut tax authorities. They evaded payment of tobacco excise tax by a wholesale business in Berlin, Conn. to the State of Connecticut from 2008 to 2012.
Sukhdev Singh, a 63-year-old man from West Hartford, Conn., pleaded guilty to conspiracy, wire fraud and money laundering in connection with evading taxes on the sale of tobacco products. He faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for conspiracy, up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for wire fraud, and up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for money laundering.
Related Federal Cases
- Sukhdev Singh, Tobacco Tax Evasion, Connecticut 2008 · Washington
- Angela M. Craig, Wire Fraud, Massachusetts 2017 · Washington
- David Fondots, Wire Fraud, Massachusetts 2014 · Connecticut
- Claudio Poles, Filing False Tax Returns, Massachusetts 2024 · Arkansas
- Steven Ware, Bank Fraud and Identity Theft, Massachusetts 2024 · Washington
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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