Wednesday, December 14, 2022

A federal jury convicted a Maryland security guard today of tax evasion.

According to court statements and evidence presented in court, Gaston Gilberto Reyes, of Germantown, did not file income tax returns with the IRS for the years 2015 through 2020. During this period, he did not report more than $1.15 million in total wages from employment at eight different security firms in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Reyes also submitted false Forms W-4 to his employers on which he claimed he was exempt from federal income tax withholding, causing the employers to withhold little or no federal income taxes from his wages. At trial, the evidence established that Reyes did not pay approximately $200,000 in income taxes over the six-year period.

Reyes is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 21, 2023. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each of six charges of tax evasion. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.   

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Melissa S. Siskind and George Meggali of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.