Baltimore's leading bail bondsman and his son were arrested Wednesday on federal charges of filing false tax returns and illegally running an insurance business, among other counts.
Milton Tillman Jr., 54, and his son, Milton Tillman III, 35, who run 4 Aces Bail Bonds Inc. and other companies, were each released pending trial during an initial appearance in Baltimore U.S. District Court on Wednesday afternoon. Neither man had been able to review the 28-count indictment before being brought to court.
Tillman Jr.'s attorney said they "had known about this case for some time," however.
Federal agents raided Tillman Jr.'s offices a year and a half earlier, seizing financial, phone and business records belonging to him and his son, along with records from a longshoremen's union at the Dundalk Marine Terminal. Milton Jr. is also charged with defrauding Ports of America Baltimore Inc. by overrepresenting the hours he worked as a longshoreman.
He's been prosecuted federally twice. He pleaded guilty in 1993 to trying to bribe a city zoning board member, and in 1996 was sentenced to 57 months in prison on charges he failed to pay taxes and funneled money into a nightclub he owned. The new indictment, returned last month and unsealed Wednesday, contains similar charges.
Milton Jr. is charged with conspiracy to defraud the Treasury Department by underrepresenting his earnings as a bail bondsman while spending large amounts to acquire apartment buildings, pay court fines and maintain his BMW along with hefty premiums on nearly $10 million in life insurance. He's also charged with five counts of filing false tax returns, one count of unlawfully engaging in the insurance business (his previous convictions prevent it), and 15 counts of wire fraud.
Tillman III is charged with the conspiracy, five counts of false tax statements, and one count of permitting a prohibited person - his father - to participate in the insurance business.
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Showing posts with label tax evasion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tax evasion. Show all posts
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Bail Bondsman To Be Sentenced For Tax Evasion
A Dorchester County bail bondsman is awaiting sentencing on a tax evasion charge, authorities said Friday.
Ernest Monroe Smith, 38, of Ridgeville, pleaded guilty late Thursday to one count of willfully making and filing a false U.S. individual income tax return, said acting U.S. Attorney Kevin F. McDonald.
Smith operates Ernest Smith Bail Bonds in the St. George area, McDonald said.
In the years 2005 and 2006, Smith received most of his bond fees in cash and deposited those fees in increments over time into his business bank account, which gave the appearance that his taxable income was less than the actual amount, McDonald said.
Smith admitted in court that he only reported gross receipts of $182,345 from his bail bonding business on his 2006 tax return, when in fact he had at least $463,318 in gross receipts that year, McDonald said.
Smith also understated his bail bonding gross receipts on his 2005 U.S. individual income tax return, McDonald said.
As part of a plea agreement, Smith stipulated he had underpaid his taxes by $95,629 in 2006, and by $53,876 in 2005, McDonald said.
The maximum penalty Smith could receive is a fine of $250,000, imprisonment of three years, supervised release of one year, and the costs of prosecution. Smith also has to pay the back taxes, McDonald said.
Senior U.S. District Judge Sol Blatt Jr. will sentence Smith at a later date, McDonald said. The case was investigated by agents of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean H. Secor of the Charleston office prosecuted the case.
Ernest Monroe Smith, 38, of Ridgeville, pleaded guilty late Thursday to one count of willfully making and filing a false U.S. individual income tax return, said acting U.S. Attorney Kevin F. McDonald.
Smith operates Ernest Smith Bail Bonds in the St. George area, McDonald said.
In the years 2005 and 2006, Smith received most of his bond fees in cash and deposited those fees in increments over time into his business bank account, which gave the appearance that his taxable income was less than the actual amount, McDonald said.
Smith admitted in court that he only reported gross receipts of $182,345 from his bail bonding business on his 2006 tax return, when in fact he had at least $463,318 in gross receipts that year, McDonald said.
Smith also understated his bail bonding gross receipts on his 2005 U.S. individual income tax return, McDonald said.
As part of a plea agreement, Smith stipulated he had underpaid his taxes by $95,629 in 2006, and by $53,876 in 2005, McDonald said.
The maximum penalty Smith could receive is a fine of $250,000, imprisonment of three years, supervised release of one year, and the costs of prosecution. Smith also has to pay the back taxes, McDonald said.
Senior U.S. District Judge Sol Blatt Jr. will sentence Smith at a later date, McDonald said. The case was investigated by agents of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean H. Secor of the Charleston office prosecuted the case.
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