According to a Department of Justice press release, Matthew Tucci of West Long Branch, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion for concealing assets in order to avoid paying more than $2 million in self-assessed income taxes for 2015 and 2016. Despite signing those returns and acknowledging the debt, Tucci moved quickly to shield his money, purchasing a portfolio of properties and structuring a web of title transfers to hide his ownership from IRS collection agents. Prosecutors say that, even after the IRS sent formal collection notices, he doubled down, transferring multiple parcels to a shell entity controlled by someone else while continuing to wield day-to-day control over at least two of them. Tucci later sold one property and refinanced another, funneling the proceeds into personal spending rather than settling his back taxes. He now faces up to five years in prison when he returns for sentencing later this year, together with supervised release, restitution, and hefty monetary penalties. If the IRS has contacted you about unpaid taxes or if you are worried that past asset transfers could be construed as evasive, it is important to consult an experienced tax attorney as soon as possible to protect your liberty and your finances.
Court records reveal a straightforward-turned-sophisticated scheme that checks every box of a classic evasion or payment prosecution. Under federal law, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that (1) a substantial tax was due, (2) the defendant performed an affirmative act to evade or defeat that tax, and (3) the defendant acted willfully. Tucci’s own signed Forms 1040 satisfied the first element: for 2015 and 2016 he reported liabilities topping $2 million, a figure the IRS later corroborated with penalty and interest calculations.
The second element, affirmative evasion, came into focus as investigators traced a pattern of real-estate transactions. Shortly after filing his returns, Tucci began purchasing residential and commercial properties. Title was later shifted into the name of an entity nominally owned by another individual, yet Tucci continued to collect rents, determine sale prices, and direct refinancing proceeds. When the IRS issued standard “balance-due” notices in 2017, Tucci’s response was not payment or negotiation but further concealment. Multiple deeds were executed that placed twelve properties under the shell entity’s control. In 2019, as IRS Revenue Officers intensified collection efforts, Tucci filed paperwork falsely stating that he had “no connection” to the entity, which the government claimed was an overt act that squarely meets the law’s requirement of “any conduct, the likely effect of which is to mislead or conceal.”
Willfulness, the third element, is often the toughest for prosecutors, but Tucci’s contemporaneous handwritten notes, emails directing title companies, and the false 2019 statement provided powerful evidence that he understood his duty and chose to violate it. Courts routinely treat such “badges of fraud”, concealment, misrepresentation, and personal benefit, as decisive proof of willful intent.
How Unpaid Taxes Can Turn into Criminal Tax Matters
Most unpaid taxes are resolved through civil procedures: the IRS sends notices, files a federal tax lien, and if necessary levies bank accounts or wages. Criminal referrals are reserved for willful, affirmative schemes to defeat collection. Common triggers include concealment of assets (e.g., titling property in nominees, offshore accounts, or trusts), false statements to IRS personnel (18 U.S.C. § 1001 violations often accompany § 7201 charges). Pattern and dollar magnitude. While evading any amount can be criminal, the IRS prioritizes six-figure (or larger) cases, especially when the unpaid tax funds extravagant lifestyles.
Once IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) opens a case, special agents can obtain grand jury subpoenas, interview witnesses, and prepare a prosecution report for the Tax Division of the Department of Justice. Indictment typically follows; guilty pleas, like Tucci’s, often result when the paper trail is overwhelming and an obstruction enhancement looms.
Practical Lessons for Taxpayers with Tax Debt
Proactive contact with the IRS’s Collection division, before a case lands with IRS-CI, opens options such as installment agreements, offers-in-compromise, and lien subordination for refinancing. Also, transferring assets to relatives’ LLCs or trusts rarely succeeds. The IRS employs forensic accountants trained to “pierce the veil,” and the maneuver itself can be evidence of intent. Additionally, full disclosure beats partial disclosure. Providing incomplete or misleading information strikes agents as deception, escalating civil matters into criminal ones. Finally, if cash-flow issues genuinely prevent full payment, compile bank statements, medical bills, or other records showing inability rather than unwillingness to pay.
This story exemplifies the serious repercussions that follow criminal tax investigations and prosecutions. If you have failed to pay assessed taxes, transferred assets that could appear evasive, or taken any position on a return that cannot be substantiated upon audit, it is in your best interest to reach out to a seasoned tax attorney to ensure that you are on the right track to get right with the government.
