Officials stated that a Virginia businessman was convicted by a federal jury on Tuesday for dodging the payment of employment taxes, submitting fraudulent tax forms, and impeding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Based on the available evidence, it can be established that James C. Jones Jr., a resident of Christiansburg, was the proprietor and operator of Lifeline Ambulance Service Inc. during the period spanning from January 2008 to December 2009.
Jones Jr. paid the IRS an estimated $200,000 in federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare taxes deducted from Lifeline’s employees.
However, he did not send the IRS such withholdings. Therefore, in December 2009, the IRS assessed Jones’ unpaid employment taxes as an individual responsibility.
Jones lied about his financial resources and assets to deter the IRS from collecting the taxes, even though he owned many Caribbean homes, bank accounts, and vintage “muscle cars.”
Jones continued to obstruct IRS collection efforts by filing false tax returns for 2013 through 2018 that did not report the rental income from his Caribbean properties and claimed false deductions.
Jones also falsely represented to the Justice Department that he did not have records responsive to a subpoena ordering him to produce foreign bank records when, in fact, he possessed these records as the director and owner of multiple foreign holding companies.
Jones faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for tax evasion, three years in prison for each false return count and three years in prison for obstructing the IRS.
He also faces a period of supervised release and monetary penalties.
IRS-CI is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Francesca Bartolomey, Todd Ellinwood and Brian Flanagan of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlene Day for the Western District of Virginia are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly McGann for the Western District of Virginia.