Sometimes, it’s hard to make ends meet when more money is flowing out than in. With some careful planning though, most people can manage to pay the bills and save a little on the side by simply adhering to a budget or getting a second job. Today’s fraudster is the former Chief Executive Officer of a Pacific Northwest community bank who didn’t have any trouble making ends meet. He actually had a problem with adhering to a reasonable budget and used his second job to carry out a $2.3 million tax fraud scheme that enabled him to live quite the comfortable life.
The banker from Renton, Washington was evidently a trusted and revered individual who was chosen as a trustee for a former customer’s estate. When the customer passed away, the CEO assisted the surviving wife with her inherited estate. The bank executive paid himself more than $3.2 million in fees for the services he provided; however, he only reported $943,322 of the extra income he earned while also earning a really good salary at the Seattle-area bank. (By neglecting to report more than $2,321,750 in income, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) incurred a loss of $867,540 in unpaid taxes.)
The tax fraud scheme went on for seven years, continuing three more years after the former bank executive retired and moved to LaCrosse, Wisconsin. During those years, he enjoyed four homes in two states, multiple luxury vehicles and a nice $150,000 annual pension. (It is quite evident that the fraudster did not need to cheat on his taxes to make ends meet.)
The 64-year-old former banker pleaded guilty to tax fraud for failing to report $2.3 million in income. He was sentenced to one year and a day in prison, will need to serve one year of supervised release, and pay a $150,000 fine for filing a false tax return. It also looks like the fraudster will pay more than $867,000 to the IRS plus the interest he owes, which is around $143,000. (I guess you could say that while trying to meet ends, this fraudster’s tax fraud scheme has officially met its end.)
Today’s “Fraud of the Day” is based on an article, “Former bank CEO sentenced to prison time for tax fraud,” posted on KIRO7.com on May 17, 2019.
SEATTLE – A former CEO of a community bank branch in Washington was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Wisconsin on Friday.
Victor Karpiak, 64, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison and one year of supervised release and was issued a $150,000 fine for filing a false tax return, U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran announced.
