NEWARK — The owner of Steve Bezik Inc., a residential painting and gutter cleaning business located in Union County, has pleaded guilty to personal income tax evasion.
Stephen Bezik entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler. Bezik pleaded guilty to a one-count information that charges him with income tax evasion. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 18.
“Mr. Bezik’s attempt to evade paying his fair share was a theft from the American public,” stated Jonathan D. Larsen, special agent in charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office. “To build faith in our nation’s tax system, honest taxpayers need to be reassured that everyone is paying their fair share.”
According to court documents and statements made in court: Bezik was the sole owner and operator of Steve Bezik Inc. For the tax years 2008 through 2012, Bezik deposited a portion of the Steve Bezik Inc. customer checks into a business bank account. The other portion of the Steve Bezik Inc. customer checks, which were a significant percentage of gross receipts, were either deposited into or cashed against a personal bank account maintained by Bezik. Bezik used a portion of the gross receipts deposited into or cashed against his personal bank account to pay for business expenses and used the other portion of the funds to pay for personal expenses.
For the tax years 2008 through 2012, Bezik reported as income the customer checks he deposited into the business bank account but failed to report as income the customer checks he deposited into or cashed against his personal bank account. The customer checks that Bezik failed to report as income totaled approximately $1,066,061. Bezik admitted that for the 2011 tax year, he failed to report approximately $218,482 of income earned by Steve Bezik Inc. This unreported income resulted in an approximate tax due and owing to the government of $40,521.
In addition, Bezik admitted that for the tax years 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012, he failed to report as income approximately $847,579 in customer checks that he deposited into or cashed against his personal bank account. This unreported income resulted in an approximate tax loss to the government of $125,545.
The charge of tax evasion carries a statutory maximum prison sentence of five years and a statutory maximum fine equal to the greatest of: (1) $250,000; (2) twice the gross amount of any pecuniary gain derived from the offense; or (3) twice the gross amount of any pecuniary loss sustained by any victims of the offense.
The investigation was conducted by IRS-Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, under the direction of U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.