Rockland County Business Owner Charged In Felony Tax Fraud Case

• by New York State Department of Taxation and Finance

ALBANY, NY (02/03/2010)(readMedia)-- New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Acting Commissioner Jamie Woodward announced that Charles Wurf, part-owner of D.E.C. Copiers, Inc., located at 6 North Route 9W, West Haverstraw was recently charged, along with the company, with filing fraudulent New York State sales tax returns and stealing over $286,000 in state sales tax for a five year period.

Wurf, 53, who resides at 63 Branchville Rd., Valley Cottage, and D.E.C. Copiers, Inc. both pled guilty on January 25 before Rockland County Supreme Court Judge William Nelson. Wurf pled to one count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a class D felony, and D.E.C Copiers, Inc. pled to one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class C felony.

Wurf, one of four owners of D.E.C. Copiers, Inc., admitted he filed false New York State sales tax returns in order to steal $286,000 between March 1, 2003 and May 31, 2008.

Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced before Judge Nelson on March 23, 2010.

An investigation into Wurf's business began in 2008, when an accountant hired by Wurf and D.E.C. Copiers, Inc., was charged with preparing false personal income tax returns for a Department of Taxation and Finance undercover officer who was posing as a small business owner.

As part of the accountant's plea agreement, which included pleading to a misdemeanor, paying a $50,000 fine, and surrendering his license to practice as a Certified Public Accountant, the accountant agreed to cooperate with the Department on investigations into his clients. His cooperation included recording conversations with Wurf about filing false New York State sales tax returns for D.E.C. Copiers, Inc.

The recordings revealed that Wurf allegedly instructed the accountant to prepare one return showing he had collected $5,000 less in sales tax than he had actually collected. The accountant then suggested amending a prior sales tax return which had understated sales tax collected by D.E.C. Copiers, Inc. Wurf refused to amend the prior false sales tax return because amending that return would mean amending all of the sales tax returns.

Acting Commissioner Woodward said, "Business owners who knowingly file false returns and fail to pay the taxes they collect are cheating their customers and committing a crime. All New Yorkers should be aware that when business owners pocket these taxes, state and local governments are losing revenues that are crucial to deliver needed services.

"I thank Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and his staff for their aggressive prosecution of these and other tax cases.

"The Department offers the Voluntary Disclosure and Compliance Program to encourage delinquent taxpayers to become compliant without facing criminal prosecution or civil penalty. For more information about these programs, go to the Department's website at www.nystax.gov."

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