A New Jersey man pleaded guilty to tax evasion that involved him buying property with the funds meant for the IRS.
According to the charges brought against him, Matthew Tucci of West Long Branch, New Jersey, filed tax returns that stated he owed more than $2 million in taxes for 2015 and 2016. Despite admitting that he owed those taxes, Tucci opted not to pay them and instead purchased real estate while pursuing transactions designed to conceal his interest in those properties.
In 2017, the IRS sent notices to Tucci that he owed taxes, interest, and penalties for 2015 and 2016. After receiving these notices, Tucci transferred multiple properties to an entity owned by another individual, but he continued to exert control over at least two of them. Tucci later sold one property and refinanced the other and then used the proceeds from these transactions to pay his personal expenses rather than his tax debts. In 2019, Tucci submitted documents to the IRS that falsely claimed that he had no connection to the entity that owned the properties.
Tucci is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 9 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison as well as a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.
