HOWELL – The owner of a roofing business admitted to tax evasion charges amounting to about half a million dollars.
Wilson Salas-Molina, 39, of Howell, pleaded guilty to tax evasion and failure to pay the IRS more than $540,000 in employment taxes, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
As the owner of US Contractor Inc. (a/k/a Wilson Contractors Inc., a/k/a WC Contractor Inc.), a roofing business in Monmouth County, he was required to withhold a portion of employees pay to hand over to the IRS. Instead, he cashed checks from roofing clients at a check cashing service, and then paid his 14 employees in cash. In this way, he was able to conceal his payment of wages, and didn’t pay the IRS the employment taxes.
The two counts – tax evasion and failure to collect, account for, and pay over payroll taxes – each carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for July 13, 2020.
