The Virginian-Pilot
©
NORFOLK
A Virginia Beach couple who owned several employment placement services were sentenced to federal prison Wednesday after admitting they failed to pay nearly $1 million in payroll taxes.
Constance V. Wiseman, 64, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to five years in prison, and her husband, Ross Allan Rogers, 54, received three years and one month after each pleaded guilty to willfully failing to pay federal taxes.
U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith sentenced Wiseman to nearly two more years than her husband based on a lengthy history of fraud convictions. The judge called Wiseman's criminal record "a bit overwhelming."
"And it does not bode well for you," the judge told her before handing down the maximum penalty allowed.
Wiseman has convictions dating to at least the 1980s for embezzlement, larceny, fraud, bad checks and failing to appear in court. Rogers has a relatively minor criminal record, but the judge noted that he is a convicted sex offender.
Wiseman's lawyer, Lawrence H. Woodward Jr., told the judge there was little he could do for Wiseman, given her criminal record. "There's no way to sugarcoat or soft-sell that," he said in court.
The couple ran a number of employment agencies, including Dow Personnel, Career Services of Virginia and Virginia Professional Employers, all subsidiaries of Douglas Enterprises Inc.
According to the criminal filing, the couple failed to pay the Internal Revenue Service $983,000 in unemployment, Social Security and Medicare taxes from 2004 to 2006.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan M. Salsbury said the loss to the IRS from the couple was actually more than $2 million, but the statute of limitations had expired on more than half the amount owed.
Court records show that the couple used that money to pay personal expenses, including credit card bills and home improvements, and to buy a pickup, a boat and antiques.
Rogers apologized to his family, friends and to the community. "I very deeply regret the effects of my actions," he said. "I am extremely sorry."
His lawyer, Franklin Swartz, said the couple tried to negotiate the debt civilly with the IRS, but that fell through before the criminal action was filed.
"I think this thing got beyond their ability to handle it," he said.
Smith ordered the couple to repay the $983,000 when they get out of prison. She also told the government to seize all the couple's assets, which include about $86,000 worth of cash, stocks, life insurance, vehicles and a camper.
Tim McGlone, (757) 446-2343, tim.mcglone@pilotonline.com
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DOW Personnel
I use to work for this couple years ago. Connie was so rude and nasty as a manager/CEO. She had no sympathy towards her employees especially when it came to death in the family. She felt that you needed to be at work regardless and she gave bad reveiew when used as a reference. Many of her former employees will tell you how she was. Her husband was a bum on the street that she changed.
Ditto
As another former employee, I agree with your characterization except -- Connie didn't change Ross. She just cleaned him up a bit.
Big government requires big taxes
I feel like most everyone else that if I have to pay taxes everyone should have to (and these folks sounded like they weren't the most honest to begin with), but the other side of the story is that we now live in a nation where private business owners can end up owing the government a million dollars in taxes. That's the real story.
Duh!
Of course you owe the government if you DON'T PAY YOUR TAXES. Isn't paying taxes a patriotic duty? It's OUR government! It's about time they locked up more of these tax cheats and maybe spent less time worrying about the so-called war on drugs or all thes illegals who are allegedly stealing everyone's job.
Payroll Taxes
since it was specifically identified as payroll taxes, it's a good likelihood the majority was money they withheld from their employees and just kept for themselves. if they had more than a very few employees, that's easy to accumulate. the real story is that their crime quite simply was theft - from their employees and from me, who sends in my taxes regularly.
You're correct. It was
You're correct. It was probably payroll taxes withheld from employees and pocketed rather than the government with its hand in the pocket of those who are just trying to make a living.
Good-jail time!
It's amazing, but refreshing to see these two actually get time. Now.....how about the accountant at Sentara Norfolk Gen Hosp. (wife of former FPD LT,) who didn't pay taxes for 9 years on her business, but was never charged?????!!!!!
TAX CONVICTION
The real question in all this is where was the IRS while the debt was being accumulated? $983,000 in debt does not accumulate overnight. Further, who let the statute of limitations (which is 10 years) expire?
IRS should have been on these guys long before that time.
In the mean time, the hood with Guns run wild in the local area
But..... at least the IRS can collect taxes to catch them.
How about those tax avoidance commercials?
"I owed over $1 million in taxes and only paid $150!"
So ... WHO pays the taxes these creeps have managed to avoid?