Close X

Valencia Man Sentenced to 2 Years for Filing a False Tax Return

Posted by Fay Arfa | Feb 07, 2018 | 0 Comments

LOS ANGELES – A Valencia resident convicted of filing a federal tax return that failed to report income that he received by having his company pay for many of his personal expenses was sentenced today to 24 months in federal prison.

Walter Daniel Prezioso, 47, the former vice president and manager of the now-defunct GSP Precision, Inc., was sentenced today by United States District Judge John F. Walter.

A federal jury in November convicted Prezioso of one count of willfully subscribing to a false 2013 federal income tax return.

In the early 1990s, Prezioso began working at GSP Precision, a Burbank-based machine shop owned by his father and a third party. In 1997, his father sold half of his shares to Prezioso, making him a 25 percent owner. By 2001, Prezioso had full control of GSP's operations and held sole authority over the corporate checking account.

According to the evidence presented at trial, by 2007, Prezioso was using his control over GSP's checking account and corporate lines of credit to make payments for many of his personal expenses, including luxury automobile leases and the construction of a tennis court and swimming pool at his residence.

Between 2007 and 2013, according to court documents, Prezioso used GSP funds to pay for hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal expenses. He concealed the expenditures as legitimate business expenses on GSP's books and records, thereby ensuring that his true income from GSP would not be reported on his Forms W-2 or as officer compensation on GSP's corporate tax returns.

According to the government's evidence, Prezioso failed to report any of the additional compensation on his individual income tax returns, resulting in a tax loss of more than $751,000.

The jury that convicted Prezioso of subscribing to a false 2013 individual income tax return acquitted the defendant of seven additional counts.

The investigation into Prezioso was conducted by IRS Criminal Investigation.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul H. Rochmes, Valerie L. Makarewicz and James C. Hughes of the Tax Division.

Component(s): USAO – California, Central

Contact: Thom Mrozek Spokesperson/Public Affairs Officer United States Attorney's Office Central District of California (Los Angeles) 213-894-6947

Press Release Number: 18-018Updated February 6, 2018

Central District of California DOJ / 18-018 / February 5, 2018

About the Author

Fay Arfa

Fay Arfa has the distinction of being Certified as a Specialist in two separate areas of law – Criminal Law as well as Appellate Law – by the California State Bar, Board of Specialization. The National Board of Trial Advocacy has also awarded her a board Certification in Criminal Trial Advocacy. ...

Comments

There are no comments for this post. Be the first and Add your Comment below.

Leave a Comment

Board Certifications



Contact Us Today

Fay Arfa is committed to answering your questions about Trials, Appeals, Habeas Corpus, State Crimes, Federal Crimes, and Sex Crimes law issues in California.

We offer a free telephone consultation and we'll gladly discuss your case with you at your convenience. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.