Call Now (800) 681-1295
Close

Florida Businessmen Plead Guilty to Payroll Tax Law Violations

Table of Contents

    One of the main aspects of the IRS and state taxing authorities’ efforts to enforce compliance with tax laws focuses on the relationship between employers and the government. At both the federal and state level, employers are required to withhold, account for, and remit taxes from employees’ paychecks. As this story will illustrate, the government does not take kindly to businesses that fail to uphold their end of the legal requirements surrounding employee tax withholding.

    Two Men Failed to Pay Over Payroll Taxes, Plead Guilty to Criminal Charges

    According to a Department of Justice press release, Edward Cespedes, a resident of Ft. Lauderdale and Joseph DeSanto, a resident of Boca Raton, each recently pleaded guilty to charges associated with the failure to collect, account for, and pay over payroll taxes.

    According to documents filed in court, Integrated HCS Practice Management LLC (hereafter referred to as “Integrated”) operated in Southfield, Michigan and it provided management services to various healthcare providers. Cespedes acted as Integrated’s managing partner and was a partial owner. In his role, he was responsible for Integrated’s payroll taxes, as well as the overall financial functions of Integrated. DeSanto also had a hand in the financial operations and payroll functions of Integrated thus is considered by the IRS as being responsible for payroll taxes.

    Prosecutors from the Department of Justice allege that despite their responsibilities, Cespedes and DeSanto failed to cause Integrated to timely pay its payroll taxes to the IRS for the third quarter of 2013, the fourth quarter of 2013, and the first quarter of 2014. Additionally and unrelated to the operations of Integrated, DeSanto also pleaded guilty to one count of failure to file his personal tax return for 2013.

    Sentencing is scheduled for early next year and each of the two men could face five years in prison for the payroll tax charge. Additionally, DeSanto could face up to an additional year in federal prison for failure to file his 2013 individual tax return. Cespedes and DeSanto will also each face a term of supervised release after their federal prison stint is up and each will likely be required to pay restitution to the IRS.

    Understanding the Importance of Payroll Tax Compliance

    As we mentioned earlier, the IRS and state taxing authorities do not take the failure to comply with payroll tax laws lightly. Such violations rank alongside tax evasion and failure to report overseas bank accounts in the IRS’ harshest prosecutions. If you are facing a payroll tax audit or your business is under scrutiny for other tax matters, it is in your best interest to contact a competent tax defense attorney as soon as possible.

    Contact an Experienced Tax Attorney Today

    Not only will a payroll tax defense attorney help you craft a defensible tax strategy, they will assist in ensuring that your legal rights are not violated in the investigatory process. The IRS and state taxing authorities commonly send their top dogs after payroll tax law offenders. A tax lawyer will help you keep your rights and ability to defend against the IRS or state tax authority intact.

    The tax and accounting professionals at the Tax Law Offices of David W. Klasing have extensive experience representing taxpayers from all walks of life. Whether you are a small business owner or an individual that has received notice that your tax return is being examined, our team of zealous advocates is standing by to assist. Do not let the threat of criminal tax prosecution keep you up at night. Contact the Tax Law Offices of David W. Klasing today for a reduced-rate consultation.

    Here is a link to our YouTube channel: click here!

    Also, we’ve expanded our offices! In addition to our offices in Irvine and Los Angeles, the Tax Law Offices of David W. Klasing now have offices San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, Panorama City, Oxnard, San Diego, Bakersfield, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, and Sacramento.

    Note: If you have concerns about the privacy of our initial or subsequent communication and are unable to easily travel to our Irvine / Orange County Main Office, consider scheduling a GoToMeeting to safely and securely establish an initial or maintain an existing attorney client relationship.  With end-to-end encryption, strong passwords and top-rated reliability, no one is messing with your meeting. To schedule a reduced rate initial consultation via GoToMeeting follow this link.   Call our office and request a GoToMeeting if you are an existing client. We are generally happy to travel to any of our appointment only satellite offices for a subsequent meeting in appropriate circumstances once a relationship is established via a signed engagement letter and the payment of an initial retainer or where enough retainer is available where a current client to cover the reasonable travel time and time required for the meeting.

    Will it cost me more to hire the Tax Law Offices of David W. Klasing, whose main office and the vast majority of the firm’s staff is located in Irvine California, but an appointment only Satellite office is close to my location, as opposed to a local company?  Absolutely not!  See our policies that address this issue here:

    Questions about delinquent payroll taxes and trust fund recovery penalty

    Tax Help Videos

    Representing Clients from U.S. and International Locations Regarding Federal and California Tax Issues

    tax lawyers

    Main Office

    Orange County
    2601 Main St. Penthouse Suite
    Irvine, CA 92614
    (949) 681-3502

    Our headquarters is located in Irvine, CA. Our beautiful 19,700 office space is staffed full-time and always available for our clients to meet with our highly qualified and experienced staff of Attorneys, Certified Public Accountants and Enrolled Agents. We also offer virtual consultations and can travel to meet with clients in one of our satellite offices.

    Outside of our 4 hour initial consultation option, we do not charge travel time or travel expenses when traveling to one of our Satellite offices, or surrounding business districts, where it is necessary to meet personally with taxing authority personnel, make court appearances, or any in person meeting deemed necessary for the effective representation of a client. To make this as flexible, efficient, and convenient as possible, David W. Klasing is an Instrument Rated Private Pilot and Utilizes the Firms Cirrus SR22 to service client’s in California and in the Southwest by air. Offices outside these areas are serviced via commercial jet airlines. None of these costs are charged to our clients.

    Satellite Offices

    California
    (310) 492-5583
    (760) 338-7035
    (916) 290-6625
    (415) 287-6568
    (909) 991-7557
    (619) 780-2538
    (661) 432-1480
    (818) 935-6098
    (805) 200-4053
    (510) 764-1020
    (408) 643-0573
    (760) 338-7035
    Arizona
    (602) 975-0296
    New Mexico
    (505) 206-5308
    New York
    (332) 224-8515
    Texas
    (512) 828-6646
    Washington, DC
    (202) 918-9329
    Nevada
    (702) 997-6465
    Florida
    (786) 999-8406
    Utah
    (385) 501-5934