FLORIDA — A South Florida man has pleaded guilty to not paying more than $20 million in employment taxes withheld from his employees’ pay and filing a false tax return, said the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
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Matthew Brown, a Martin County resident, owned and operated several businesses, including Elite Payroll, a payroll services company. Elite Payroll served small businesses in St. Lucie, Martin, and Palm Beach counties by withholding Social Security, Medicare, and federal income taxes from employees’ wages and paying those funds to the IRS, according to court documents and statements made in court.
Between 2014 and 2022, Mr Brown reportedly failed to pay over $20 million in withheld taxes from Elite Payroll and other businesses he controlled. Instead, he charged clients the full amount of their tax liabilities, filed false tax returns that substantially underreported those liabilities, and kept the difference, the DOJ said.
Brown is said to have used the funds for personal purchases, including commercial and residential real estate, a multi-million-dollar home, and luxury assets such as a Valhalla 55 Sport Yacht, a Falcon 50 Aircraft, and high-end cars, including Ferraris, Porsches, and Rolls Royces.
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In total, his actions caused the IRS to lose over $22 million, the DOJ said.
Mr Brown faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine his sentence based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Andrew Ascencio and Ashley Stein of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Porter for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case, with assistance from former Assistant U.S. Attorney Diana Acosta.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida announced the guilty plea.
