Columbus Tax Fraud Lawyers

Columbus Tax Fraud Lawyers: When Accountants Enable Under The Table Payments

Dennis G. Sartain was the accountant for two Columbus businesses – home building and real estate brokerage operations. He was supposed to ensure compliance. He was supposed to keep the books clean. He was supposed to make sure taxes got paid properly.

Instead, he conspired with others to pay employees “under the table.” The tax loss exceeded $1 million. The fraud loss approached $3.7 million. The sentence from U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson: 120 months in federal prison. Ten years. The expertise that made Sartain valuable to those businesses became the expertise that enabled their fraud – and sealed his fate.

That case tells you everything about how tax fraud works in Columbus. The professionals who should prevent fraud sometimes orchestrate it. The credentials that certify expertise become evidence of willfulness. And the Southern District of Ohio responds with sentences measured in years, not months.

The Accountant Who Got Ten Years For Paying People Under The Table

Heres exactly what Sartain did wrong. He was the accountant – the person specifically hired to handle financial matters properly. He had access to the books. He understood the systems. He knew what compliance required. And he used all of that knowledge to help two businesses pay employees without proper tax withholding or reporting.

“Under the table” sounds almost casual. It isnt. When you pay employees off the books, your failing to withhold income tax. Your failing to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. Your failing to report wages. Your creating false records. Each of these failures is a separate violation. Combined across multiple employees over multiple years, the exposure compounds rapidly.

Think about what “under the table” payments mean for the employees who recieved them. There not getting credit for Social Security contributions. There not building toward benefits. There employment history shows gaps or reduced income. And if the scheme gets discovered, there potentially liable for taxes that should have been withheld but werent.

120 months. Ten years in federal prison. Thats what “under the table” payments cost Dennis Sartain.

$26 Million Embezzled Through Payroll Access

Yi He worked for a Columbus furniture company. He was solely responsible for payroll and payroll tax-related duties. That access – the authority to process payments, the control over bank accounts, the trust his employer placed in him – became the mechanism for massive fraud.

From 2018 untill 2022, Yi He embezzled more then $26 million from his employers bank accounts into his own personal and financial investment accounts. Twenty-six million dollars. Stolen through the same systems he was hired to manage honestly.

The sentence: 60 months in federal prison, plus restitution to both his former employer and the IRS. Five years for abusing the trust that came with payroll responsibility. And the restitution? He’ll owe that $26 million for the rest of his life.

And the IRS has its own claim. Payroll taxes that should have been paid werent. Employment taxes that should have been remitted never reached the government. The embezzlement wasnt just theft from the employer – it was tax fraud against the federal government. Thats why both the company AND the IRS are owed restitution.

The Tax Attorney Who Obstructed The IRS

Marcus “Marc” Dunn was a licensed attorney in Ohio. His client, Dr. Lake, had entities that the IRS was auditing around 2010. When an IRS revenue officer requested documentation, Dunn provided what the officer needed – or so it seemed.

The bills of sale were false. They falsly inflated the value of equipment to support claimed depreciation deductions. A tax attorney – someone specificaly trained to help clients comply with IRS rules – created fraudulent documents to decieve IRS investigators.

His sentence: 18 months in federal prison. The Ohio bar now has a conviction to review. The career he built providing tax advice became evidence of how deliberately he obstructed federal investigation.

$4.4 Million In False Refund Claims

Jose Luis Martinez ran a different kind of scheme in Columbus. Rather then helping businesses evade taxes or embezzling through payroll, he filed false refund claims directly with the IRS. His target: $4.4 million in fraudulent refunds.

The sentence: 60 months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and restitution of over $4.4 million to the IRS. Five years for trying to steal millions through completly fabricated tax returns.

Mercedes Emelinda-Silie worked with Martinez on the same scheme. She got 36 months. The conspiracy involved multiple people, multiple false returns, millions of dollars in fraudulent claims. Each participant faced prosecution. Each faced prison.

Filing False Tax Returns From Federal Prison

Malek B. Aliane was already in federal prison when he decided to commit more tax fraud. From 2013 through 2015, while incarcerated or on supervised release, he filed false personal income tax returns. In 2013 and 2014, while actualy in prison, he mailed paper returns to the IRS.

His sentence for the new crimes: 36 months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and over $90,000 in restitution to the IRS. The prison time he was already serving extended by years becuase he couldnt stop commiting fraud even while incarcerated.

Heres the paradox that makes Alianes case so remarkable. Prison is supposed to incapacitate criminals – to prevent them from committing more crimes. But tax fraud requires nothing more then paper, a pen, and access to mail. Aliane proved that even physical imprisonment dosent stop some people from continuing there fraudulent conduct.

Tawnya Writesel And The 100 False Returns

Tawnya Writesel, also known as Tawnya Rutan, was a Columbus woman who conspired to defraud the IRS between April 2012 and September 2015. Her method: filing approximately 100 false income tax returns attempting to obtain fraudulent refunds totaling approximately $548,000.

Her sentence: 12 months and one day in prison, plus restitution of more then $108,000 to the IRS. A year in federal custody for a scheme that filed nearly 100 fraudulent returns over three and a half years.

Ohio’s Dual Prosecution Reality

Unlike Texas or Florida, Ohio has a state income tax. This creates exposure that single-income-tax states dont have. Ohio tax fraud can be prosecuted at BOTH the state and federal level – creating potential for consecutive sentences and compounding penalties.

The Ohio Department of Taxation has its own enforcement mechanisms. State-level audits can discover fraud that gets refered to federal authorities. Federal investigations can reveal state-level violations. The coordination between state and federal prosecutors means exposure multiplies rather then overlaps.

And Ohio’s professional licensing boards add another layer. The Ohio Board of Accountancy reviews CPA convictions. The Ohio Supreme Court disciplines attorneys. Medical boards review physician convictions.

The Southern District’s Approach To Major Fraud

The Southern District of Ohio covers Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, and surrounding areas. The US Attorneys Office maintains dedicated prosecutors for financial crimes who understand how tax fraud schemes operate.

IRS Criminal Investigation Cincinnati field office coordinates closely with federal prosecutors. By the time charges get filed, investigations have been running for months or years. The evidence is gathered before you know the investigation exists.

And the sentences are real. Sartain got 120 months – ten years. Martinez got 60 months. Yi He got 60 months. These arent theoretical maximums that judges never impose. These are actual sentences handed down in Columbus courtrooms.

The Professional License Catastrophe

Columbus has a substantial professional population – accountants serving businesses throughout Central Ohio, attorneys handling corporate matters, financial advisors managing portfolios. Many of these professionals dont realize that tax fraud can destroy there careers independant of criminal penalties.

Dennis Sartain was an accountant. His conviction for tax fraud dosent just cost him 10 years in prison – it destroys the professional credential that defined his career. Marcus Dunn was a licensed attorney. His conviction for obstructing the IRS goes directly to professional fitness.

Defense Strategy In Columbus

If your facing tax fraud exposure in Columbus, the calculus involves understanding how the Southern District operates and what Ohio’s dual prosecution environment means for your situation.

The Sartain case shows what happens to professional fraud – 10 years for an accountant who helped businesses pay employees under the table. The Yi He case shows how payroll access becomes fraud opportunity – 5 years for embezzling $26 million. The Dunn case shows that attorneys get prosecuted too – 18 months for obstructing IRS investigation.

The time to address tax fraud exposure is before any of that happens. Voluntary disclosure programs exist. Coming forward before the IRS finds you creates opportunities to resolve issues civily – with penalties and interest, but potentialy without prison.

If theres tax fraud exposure in your situation – unreported income, employment taxes not properly paid, professional services that crossed the line – the time to address it is before anyone starts looking. Appeals go to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Your exposure persists untill you address it.