Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MICHAEL C. MONROE, 48, of Norwalk, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to six months of imprisonment, six months of home confinement, three years of supervised release, and 90 hours of community service, for tax evasion.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Monroe operated a construction business known as Monroe Construction. From 2008 through 2013, Monroe owed substantial unpaid income taxes and penalties to the IRS. In 2014, the IRS levied the business bank account used by Monroe as the operating account for his construction company. Monroe subsequently closed his business bank account and, between approximately November 2014 and November 2017, evaded payment to the IRS of his preexisting tax obligations by using a check cashing service to cash approximately $1.5 million in customer checks paid to his business. For the 2014 and 2015 tax years, Monroe failed to report to the IRS a total of more than $700,000 that his business generated in gross revenues. In addition to evading payment to the IRS of more than $107,000, he understated the federal income taxes he owed in 2014 and 2015 by approximately $34,000.
Judge Underhill ordered Monroe to pay total back taxes of $141,041, plus interest and penalties.
On March 15, 2021, Monroe pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion.
Monroe is required to report to prison by December 9, 2021.
This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.
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