ALBUQUERQUE – A jewelry store owner in Albuquerque, NM, has pleaded guilty to a tax evasion charge.
David Castle, 76, owner and operator of the Gold and Silver Exchange, was indicted in February 2018 and charged with obstructing the administration of the internal revenue laws and tax evasion.
At sentencing, Castle faces a maximum penalty of five years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release, a maximum fine of $250,000, and restitution. A sentencing date has yet to be scheduled.
Count 1 of the indictment charged Castle with perpetuating a scheme to evade and defeat the assessment and payment of taxes to the U.S. from December 2004 through January 2018.
According to the indictment, Castle:
- Used several nominee businesses to conduct GSE’s financial operations to hide income from the IRS.
- Executed the scheme by using bank accounts belonging to the nominee businesses.
- Concealed personal income and expenditures.
- Engaged in cash transactions.
- Employed and paid GSE personnel in cash that could not easily be connected to GSE’s business operations.
- Deliberately failed to keep accurate business records reflecting GSE’s income and expenses.
Count 2 of the indictment alleged that from December 2008 through December 2017, Castle attempted to evade federal taxes for the years 1992-93, 1995-2002, 2005, and 2006 in the amount of $104,446.81. Castle is alleged to have committed this crime by:
- Concealing from the IRS the nature and location of his business revenue.
- Placing funds in bank accounts belonging to nominee businesses.
- Emphasizing cash operations in order to place the revenue beyond the reach of the legal process.
- Failing to file personal and business income tax returns or by filing false or frivolous tax returns.
On Friday, Castle pleaded guilty to Count 2. In his plea agreement, Castle admitted that from 2010 through 2013, while he was the sole owner and operator of GSE, he filed no tax returns for his business, his business provided no tax withholdings to the IRS, and he paid no taxes either for his business or his household.
Castle acknowledged relying on cash transactions to operate GSE, and using bank accounts that appeared to be unassociated with GSE to conceal the business’s revenue. Castle agreed that his criminal conduct resulted in a tax loss of $211,829 during tax years 2010 through 2013.