North Carolina Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Return

A North Carolina man pleaded guilty yesterday to filing a false tax return.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Steve Sloan, 64, owned and operated Total Lawn and Landscape Pros LLC (Total Lawn), which provided lawn care services  in Greensboro, Chapel Hill, and nearby areas. From 2014 to 2018, Sloan filed false returns with the IRS reporting each year only a portion of the profits actually earned by Total Lawn. For example, on his 2017 tax return Sloan reported total receipts of less than $200,000. In reality, the company’s receipts that year were $464,650. In all, Sloan caused a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $318,735.

Sloan is scheduled to be sentenced on June 21, 2022, and faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison. Sloan also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Hairston for the Middle District of North Carolina, and Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Karen Wingerd of the IRS-Criminal Investigation Charlotte Field Office made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Kevin Schneider of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanner Kroeger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina are prosecuting the case.