August 24, 2022

David C. Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced today that a Wilmington woman pled guilty in federal court on August 12, 2022, to three counts of tax evasion. U.S. District Judge Richard G. Andrews accepted the plea.

According to court documents, Brenda Mathis, the owner of LJ’s Playpen Academy, a Wilmington daycare center, failed to declare all of the income received by the daycare on its corporate tax returns. As a result, the daycare underpaid taxes in 2015, 2016, and 2017.

Mathis faces a maximum of 5 years in prison for each count when sentenced on December 16, 2022. Judge Andrews will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Weiss commented, “Brenda Mathis’ scheme to evade taxes for the purpose of lining her own pockets was a theft from the American public. Together with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to protect the interests of law-abiding taxpayers by pursuing those who evade taxes for their own enrichment.”

“This guilty plea is a win for all those who play by the rules,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Mathis defrauded our nation’s tax system, a criminal act that will not be tolerated. Let her admission of guilt serve as a stern warning to anyone thinking about engaging in similar criminal behavior.”

IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”), FBI, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture OIG. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ruth Mandelbaum and Alexander Ibrahim are prosecuting the case.