BOSTON - Two brothers were convicted by a federal jury today of hiding income from their excavation business as part of a conspiracy to evade hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes.
After a jury trial, Paul Brown, 45, and Raymond Brown, 45, both of Dracut, were each convicted of one count of conspiracy to impair, impede and obstruct the Internal Revenue Service’s efforts to collect income taxes and one count of tax evasion. A third defendant, Raymond Brown’s wife, Deborah Brown, was acquitted.
Between 1996 and 2006, the Browns owned and operated J.P. Brown & Sons (J.P. Brown), a Dracut-based excavation company. Through the operation of J.P. Brown, the brothers earned almost $2 million in income over a four-year span and failed to pay any taxes on that income, and failed to file personal federal income tax returns. The brothers concealed much of their income by, among other things, placing assets in the names of their wives, taking draws from the company in the form of cash, accepting property in exchange for services rendered by J.P. Brown, and depleting the company bank account by purchasing more than a $1 million in gold and silver.
United States District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for both defendants on April 20, 2012.
Both defendants each face up to five years in prison to be followed by three years supervised release and a $250,000 fine on the conspiracy charge; and up to five years in prison, to be followed by three years supervised release and a $100,000 fine on the tax evasion charges.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Walters and Vassili Thomadakis of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
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