May 4, 2016

A Brooklyn, New York, business owner pleaded guilty to two counts of filing false tax returns. According to court documents and information presented in court, Michael Stern, 48, was the founder and operator of Prestige Optical, a retailer of sunglasses and eyeglasses. For the 2006 and 2007 tax years, Stern filed false federal income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on which he failed to report approximately $656,780 of income from online retail sales. Stern faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for each count of filing a false tax return. As part of his plea agreement, Stern also agreed to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $190,781. DOJ

Tagged in: Tax Fraud,