NORFOLK

The owner of a local limousine and bus service was sentenced Wednesday to five months in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion.

Perry Lee Rempas, 45, whose company LPR Inc. runs Norfolk Airport Express on Azalea Garden Road, admitted in federal court that he failed to report more than $400,000 in income between 1999 and 2002.

The U.S. attorney's office said in court filings that Rempas had gross receipts of more than $1 million in 2000 and 2001, yet claimed his business was defunct.

The Internal Revenue Service said it lost $79,000 in taxes as a result, and the judge ordered Rempas to repay the money. The judge also ordered Rempas to serve five months of house arrest after his release from prison.

Rempas, who has also gone by Lee Perry Rempas, held a contract with the Norfolk Airport Authority between 2003 and 2006 to provide ground transportation service for the airport. His contract was cance led after Rempas failed to keep up with his payments. The authority last year obtained a state court judg ment against Rempas' company for $86,987.

Tim McGlone, (757) 446-2343, tim.mcglone@pilotonline.com