Anyone in Michigan or elsewhere in the United States who is investigated by the FBI or the IRS involving illegal business practices or other fraudulent behavior stands the chance of facing federal charges. The FBI recently reported that a father and son who are partners in a a sports car dealership were taken into custody and charged with various white collar crimes. The formal charges include defrauding the U.S. Government and bank fraud.
The 70-year-old father and his 35-year-old son purportedly conspired to conceal from the IRS business profits worth millions of dollars. They are accused of filing partnership tax returns containing significantly understated business inventory and receipts. These understatements then allegedly flowed through to their personal tax returns, resulting in considerable underreported tax amounts due. It is further alleged that the son also concealed his assets in a 2015 filing for bankruptcy by using the fraudulent tax returns.
The bank fraud charges followed allegations of the two men conspiring to obtain financing from multiple banks and financial institutions. To do this, they allegedly submitted net worth statements that were falsely inflated, along with fraudulently fabricated tax returns to obtain loans. One of those was a mortgage of over $1million on their business property. Reportedly, they later defaulted on that loan.
If FBI and IRS investigations lead to criminal charges against someone in Michigan, the sensible option for the accused individual is to seek legal counsel immediately. A criminal defense attorney with experience in dealing with white collar crimes allegations at the federal level will explain the available defense options to contest the formal accusations. Some proceedings are resolved by way of a plea agreement whereby the individual pleads guilty to reduced charges in exchange for favorable sentencing considerations. Others are vigorously contested at trial.